Chicago Lawyer Says Rahm Not Eligible to Run for Mayor

Created: September 30, 2010 08:41 | Last updated: July 31, 2020 00:00

ABC is reporting that White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel could announce as early as Friday that he’s leaving the administration to run for mayor of Chicago, but its local Chicago affiliate is casting some doubt on whether he’s legally eligible:

At least one attorney believes a law could prevent Emanuel from being a candidate. Emanuel still owns a house in the city, but that’s not enough according to Burt Odelson, who has spent 38 years practicing election law.

Odelson says an 1871 state law requires candidates to live in their jurisdiction for one year before the election.

It seems unlikely that Rahm — who’s not shy about his ambitions to become mayor — hasn’t done his due diligence in this respect and that his house in Chicago isn’t sufficient to qualify him for residency. But Odelson’s 38 years practicing election law outnumber mine and Rahm’s combined, so I’ll reserve judgment for now.