Spring races spur shifting alliances
Chicago Sun-Times
November 23, 2007
BY RICH MILLER
Last spring's aldermanic elections, which saw big wins by independent reformers, continue to have reverberations throughout Chicago politics.
Congressman Bobby Rush, for instance, got his hat handed to him in both rounds of aldermanic voting. Rush and his once-vaunted 2nd Ward Democratic Organization lost just about every contested race they played in, including the 2nd Ward aldermanic contest. The victor of that race, freshman Ald. Bob Fioretti, decided Rush's committeeman's slot would be his next target, and Rush bowed out of the contest before a shot was ever fired. Rush even moved what was left of his operation into one of the last "friendly" wards available to him in an attempt to avoid further political bloodshed.
Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. had a far better record last spring. Jackson's organization helped several aldermanic candidates win their races, including his wife, Sandi, in her contest with Darcel Beavers.
Beavers is the daughter of Cook County Commissioner and 7th Ward Democratic Committeeman Bill Beavers. Sandi Jackson is hoping to win that committeeman's seat in February, and Jackson commissioned a recent poll that showed her creaming the old warhorse 72-18.
The sweep continues.
The "Jackson Two" are also involved in a state representative race, which is at least an indirect offshoot of last spring's aldermanic contests. But this one is no sure thing.
The Jackson organization is backing Kenny Johnson against incumbent state Rep. Elga Jefferies, who was appointed to the seat after longtime Democratic legislator Lou Jones died. Johnson ran against Jackson candidate Fioretti last spring, but didn't do all that well, even though he spent a fortune on the race. Fioretti is now with Johnson.
Jefferies is not the favorite by any means, but neither is Johnson. That sobriquet goes to Will Burns, a former top aide to Senate President Emil Jones.
Burns was Jones' choice to replace Barack Obama in the Illinois Senate after Obama was elected to the U.S. Senate. Obama also supported Burns, but the committeemen in the district, particularly 4th Ward Ald. Toni Preckwinkle, had other ideas. The committeemen chose Kwame Raoul, who had challenged Preckwinkle twice before.
Preckwinkle, Raoul, Jones and many, many others are endorsing Burns for Jefferies' House seat. The word on the street is that Obama intends to make a late endorsement of Burns in his old district.
Ald. Pat Dowell was another Jackson endorsee who defeated a Rush-backed alderman, Dorothy Tillman. Obama also endorsed Tillman, but even he couldn't save the terminally flawed incumbent from Dowell's hard-charging campaign.
One of Dowell's other supporters, state Rep. Ken Dunkin, thought he had an agreement that would make him committeeman after Tillman was ousted. Dowell had other ideas and filed for the committeeman's race against Dunkin.
Lo and behold, Dunkin now finds himself with a challenge to his House seat. Ken Sawyer, the nephew of former Chicago Mayor Eugene Sawyer, is the acting committeeman of the 3rd Ward. Sawyer is supporting Dowell against Dunkin, and Dowell is backing Sawyer in the House race.
The most interesting twist there is that Mayor Daley is supposedly backing Dowell in the committeeman's race. Dowell was elected as an independent, but she recently voted for the mayor's tax increases and budget, unlike many of her fellow freshman freethinkers, like Sandi Jackson. The betting is that Dunkin will drop out of the race against Dowell, but we'll have to wait and see.
There are plenty more fascinating contests, including state Sen. Iris Martinez's desperate bid to hold onto office, but those will have to wait for another column.