William Daley to step down as Obama’s chief of staff after election

White House Chief of Staff William Daley has told President Obama he will stay until after the 2012 reelection campaign but then wants to go home to Chicago, a senior administration official said Tuesday.

Daley, formerly an executive at JPMorgan Chase, became Obama’s top aide in January. He is the brother and son of former Chicago mayors.

Daley’s plans were first reported Monday by Mary Ann Ahern of WMAQ-Channel 5 in Chicago. The chief of staff said: “I made a commitment to the president through his reelection, which I’m confident he will do, and then my wife and I will be back in Chicago.”

The election is Nov. 6, 2012.

Daley spoke last week to Norah O’Donnell, chief White House correspondent for CBS News, who interviewed Daley last week at a panel discussion at the Newseum.

She said that when he was brought into the White House, there was discussion that he would strengthen ties with Capitol Hill and the business community and asked: “How’s that going?”

“It’s going great,” Daley said, drawing laughter from the audience. “Can’t you tell? I mean, you know, things are just really great. There’s no problem and [the] business community loves us and they love the rhetoric and there are just no problems.”

Since Daley came on board, Obama’s job approval rating has fallen to record lows as the administration has confronted an unemployment level in the 9% range.