Chicago mayor retires, spurring talk of a bid by Rahm Emanuel

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley’s (D) surprise announcement Tuesday that he will not seek another term spurred widespread speculation that White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel will run for the job.

Even though he has a plum position as President Obama’s senior staffer, Emanuel has spoken openly about his desire to run for mayor.

“While Mayor Daley surprised me today with his decision to not run for reelection, I have never been surprised by his leadership, dedication and tireless work on behalf of the city and the people of Chicago,” he said.

He won’t have much time to decide — the election is Feb. 22, 2011, and candidates need to file by Nov. 22.

A senior administration official requesting anonymity told The Hill: “I would be surprised if he [Emanuel] wasn’t a candidate.”

Emanuel, a Chicago native who has represented part of the city in the House, spoke of his interest in the job earlier this year.

In April, he told television host Charlie Rose he hoped Daley would seek reelection, but that he would like to run for the position “one day.”

“I hope Mayor Daley seeks reelection. I will work and support him if he seeks reelection,” Emanuel said at the time. “But if Mayor Daley doesn’t, one day I would like to run for mayor of the City of Chicago. That’s always been an aspiration of mine even when I was in the House of Representatives.”

In a short statement, Obama, who represented Illinois in the Senate, praised Daley’s service without mentioning Emanuel.

“No mayor in America has loved a city more or served a community with greater passion than Rich Daley. He helped build Chicago’s image as a world-class city, and leaves a legacy of progress that will be appreciated for generations to come,” the president said.

Daley’s announcement was shocking: He is the son of Chicago’s longest-serving mayor and has occupied the office since 1989. There was little indication he would not seek a seventh term.

It’s “time for me, it’s time for Chicago to move on,” he said at a Tuesday press conference.

“The truth is I have been thinking about this for the past several months,” Daley said. “In the end this is a personal decision, no more, no less.”

His wife, Maggie, is battling cancer, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The surprise announcement didn’t stop people from speculating on who would replace Daley.

Emanuel’s name was floated by radio and print news outlets in Chicago, including in banner headline stories on the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times websites.

But Emanuel could be one of more than a dozen candidates. Other names floated Tuesday include Daley’s brother, William Daley, and longtime Democratic Alderman Ed Burke.

The mayor’s announcement also inspired a flurry of Twitter posts from Washington reporters, who have long had an eye on Emanuel’s next step.

Adding to the speculation surrounding Emanuel’s future is the typically short shelf lives of White House chiefs of staff. President George W. Bush had only two, but President Clinton went through four in his two terms, and President George H.W. Bush employed three in his single term.

One of Emanuel’s top aides, Sarah Feinberg, left the White House in May to take a senior position with Bloomberg news service, which also fueled the curiosity surrounding Emanuel’s next move in politics.

Emanuel is not the only top White House aide to be subject to rumors regarding their futures. Senior advisers Valerie Jarrett and David Axelrod both moved from Chicago to Washington to serve in the White House, prompting speculation about how long they will stay in their jobs.

The former congressman uprooted his wife and three children from the Chicago area and left the House of Representatives in order to take the chief of staff position in Washington.

While in Congress, Emanuel served as the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee during the 2006 cycle in which the Democrats took control of the House. He was rumored to have coveted the Speaker’s gavel.

This story was originally posted at 2:42 p.m. and updated at 8:52 p.m.