Jackson Jr.'s chances of rSeptember 7, 2006
BY SCOTT FORNEK AND FRAN SPIELMAN Staff Reporters
Chicago Sun-Times
Predicting "it's more likely than not" that he jumps in the race, U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. moved closer to a run for mayor Wednesday, saying the only hurdles are ensuring he can raise the money, register enough new voters and recruit aldermanic candidates to carry his message citywide.
"Someone must be for you in all 50 wards in the city," the South Shore Democrat said. "This cannot be a campaign for African Americans only. It can't be a campaign for Hispanics only. It can't be a campaign for whites only."
Jackson, 41, met with reporters on the lawn outside his ivy-splashed home near Lake Michigan to announce the formation of an exploratory committee and a "listening tour."
He was more measured in his criticism of Mayor Daley than he has been in the past, praising some of the mayor's efforts on education, but suggesting parts of the city have been left behind.
"What's good enough for the North Side must be good enough for the South Side and the West Side," Jackson said.
'Plenty of time for politics'
He also criticized the Daley administration for attracting so much attention from U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, saying "taxpayers are footing the bill for waste, fraud and abuse."
Jackson said on a scale of 1 to 10, the likelihood of his running in next year's mayoral election is 71/2. He said he would need $4 million to $6 million, he hoped to register as many as 100,00 voters, and he has already vetted 15 potential aldermanic candidates and spoken to people interested in running for city clerk and treasurer.
Jackson said such support is especially important given the mayor's lock on the City Council and the mathematics of the city's nonpartisan elections, in effect since 1999. Candidates must win a majority in the February election, or the top two vote-getters face off in an April run-off.
"I don't know another way to compete effectively against this operation," Jackson said.
Jackson's more cautious movement comes after Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown and former Harold Washington aide Bill "Dock" Walls have already announced their candidacies. Daley has not yet said whether he will seek re-election but has made moves in that direction.
The mayor reacted to Jackson's announcement by trying to remain above the fray.
"There's plenty of time for politics," Daley said.
Asked whether he's concerned that multiple black challengers might cost him African-American support, Daley said, "I'm not the mayor for any group. I'm the mayor for all the people and I've done that throughout my public service."
At an unrelated news conference, Ald. Isaac Carothers (29th) let loose on Jackson.
Carothers, who defeated a Jackson-backed aldermanic challenger in 2003, accused Jackson of being a do-nothing congressman with "an ego as big as this building" and aspiring to be "king of the world."
The vitriolic broadside unnerved Daley, who was nearby. The mayor turned to Carothers and said, "Ike, give it a rest."
sfornek@suntimes.com
fspielman@suntimes.com
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