For most of the summer and into the fall, Chris Lawrence and Chris Persons were both busy planning campaigns to unseat alderman Mary Ann Smith in the 48th Ward, which includes Edgewater and parts of Uptown. Each man thought he was the best candidate to make the run; the one thing they agreed on was that Smith, a four-term incumbent, was ripe for defeat. “Let the best man win,” said Persons.
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As you probably know, you can’t just up and run for alderman. You have to fill nominating petitions with signatures from several hundred voters in your ward–a process governed by dozens of complicated and convoluted rules–before you even make the ballot. Then you have to survive any challenges to your candidacy. Challenging nominating petitions has become a favorite tactic of incumbent aldermen who have a huge advantage in money and moxie over their neophyte opponents. At the moment there are a couple hundred challenges pending before Chicago Board of Election hearing officers, most having to do with the validity of nominating-petition signatures.
In that document aldermanic candidates disclose any business interests they have with the city. According to the election rules–as clearly stated in the board’s information pamphlet–the statement is supposed to be filed with Cook County clerk David Orr’s office. Upon receiving it, Orr’s office issues the candidate a receipt, which he or she is then supposed to file with the board of elections.
candidate’s duty to make sure he’s following the rules. Correa recommended that Persons be removed from the ballot.
Smith says if she runs unopposed, Lawrence, Persons, and Spane have no one to blame but themselves. “The first thing I learned when I got involved in politics way back when is that you have to pay attention to the details,” she says. “It was a shock to go through their petitions and see they were a mess.”
