Daley’s Son Joins Crowd Seeking to Become Next Chicago Mayor

Richard M. Daley, the son of legendary Chicago political boss Richard J. Daley, joined the crowded field of Democratic mayoral candidates Monday, pledging to end the turmoil that has gripped Windy City politics since his father’s death in 1976.

“We have a problem in Chicago,” Daley said. “The name-calling and politics at City Hall are keeping us from tackling the real issues . . . . Chicago is standing still . . . . Enough is enough.”

Public opinion polls show that Daley is the strongest candidate of the seven who have announced and is more popular with voters than interim Mayor Eugene Sawyer, who has not said whether he will seek election to the job. Sawyer was appointed after Mayor Harold Washington’s death a year ago.

It is Daley’s second attempt to win the office his father dominated for more than 20 years. Daley, 46, lost the Democratic mayoral primary in 1983 in a three-way race with former Mayor Jane M. Byrne and Washington, who went on to become mayor. Published reports say Byrne is toying with running as a Republican in this election, but the former mayor has refused to comment.

The Illinois Supreme Court ruled last month that a special election must be held next April to fill the last two years of Washington’s second term. The primary election is scheduled for Feb. 28.

Daley was elected to his third term as Cook County state’s attorney last month with a particularly strong showing in Chicago, winning every one of the city’s 50 wards. During his eight years as the county’s prosecutor, Daley earned a reputation for being tough on street criminals while deferring to the federal government in political corruption prosecutions.

Daley will attempt to capitalize on the favorable way history is reflecting on his father’s long reign, when much of the groundwork for Chicago’s current vitality was established, and on the most easily recognized political name in the city.

“I’m proud of my name. My father was a great mayor and a great father,” Daley said.

And, in a city where politicians are routinely portrayed as “the black” or “the white” candidate, Daley quickly tried to establish himself as a unifying force.

“I’m not interested in running as ‘the white candidate’ or in serving as mayor of half the people,” he said, citing education, crime, the city’s economy and government waste as issues that are “not white or black issues.”

Daley attempted to reinforce this theme in his first day of campaigning with carefully orchestrated stops in white and black neighborhoods.

The deadline for filing nominating petitions is still two weeks away, but it is likely that the crowded field of Democratic mayoral aspirants will thin now.

Those who announced earlier are City Council members Timothy Evans, Edward Burke, Lawrence Bloom and Danny Davis, former Chicago Park District Supt. Edmund Kelly and former state Sen. James Taylor.

One Republican also has announced his candidacy: Edward Howlett, the son of a former popular secretary of state.