CHICAGO (AP) -- Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel hoped to avoid being forced into a runoff as voters headed to the polls Tuesday to decide whether to give the former White House chief of staff a second term.
Emanuel was poised to get the most votes after having raised millions of dollars, plastering the airwaves with ads and winning an endorsement from his former boss, President Barack Obama. However, his four challengers say Emanuel's tenacious style and handling of some major city issues have left voters wanting a change.
He needs more than 50 percent to win re-election outright in the nonpartisan race. Otherwise, he'll have to go head-to-head with the runner up, which could be embarrassing for the incumbent, who enjoys not only a huge financial advantage but the backing of business leaders and the endorsement of the city's major newspapers.
The key will be turnout, which could rival numbers four years ago when Mayor Richard Daley retired after more than two decades and the race was wide open. Already, early voting numbers - pushed by all the candidates - have bested 2011 levels, with a more than 20 percent increase despite a blast of cold weather.
Turnout was light early Tuesday, as wind chills dipped below zero, said Chicago Board of Elections spokesman James Allen. Temperatures are forecast to rise as the day progresses.
Several voters casting ballots in Englewood on the South Side said they were supporting Emanuel because he is positive on issues such as jobs, education and safer neighborhoods.
"He's bringing big corporations here to give the guys getting out of prison hope," said Willie King, a 56-year-old retired janitor. "Rahm has all (those) contacts and he is getting those corporations here, so he is giving people hope they can get a good job."
Emanuel has campaigned on the idea that his tested leadership is what the city needs.
"You gave me a chance to make the tough decisions this city needed, and we've improved our schools, our infrastructure, and our public safety," he told supporters in an email Monday. "But there's more work to be done, and I'll need your help to make sure we can continue the progress we've made."
The Democrat is facing Cook County Commissioner Jesus Garcia, Alderman Bob Fioretti, businessman Willie Wilson and perennial candidate William Walls.
They've put Emanuel on the defensive over his handling of a contract dispute that led to Chicago's first teachers' strike in 25 years, the closing of nearly 50 neighborhood schools and a spike in violent crime. They have also criticized his sometimes-combative style.
"In Chicago neighborhoods, people are largely turned off," Garcia said. "They have found him to be distant and uncaring, not really engaging in neighborhoods."
Several South Side voters disagreed, saying they felt Emanuel was compelled to close underperforming schools and those where enrollment had declined.
"If they ain't performing, what are you going to do? Keep them going?" said Ernest Hudson, a 49-year-old unemployed maintenance worker. "You can take that money and spend it somewhere else where it can do some good."
Emanuel has argued that he made decisions that helped the city and challenged the status quo. He's countered claims by taking a neighborhood-focused approach to the campaign trail, including talking up his push to increase the city's minimum wage, from $8.25 to $13 by 2019.
Also, Tuesday, Chicago voters will decide several hotly contested aldermanic races. Election officials hope turnout will match 2011 levels. Roughly 42 percent of eligible Chicago voters cast ballots that year, up from 33 percent in 2007.
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Associated Press writer Don Babwin contributed to this report.
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Emanuel was poised to get the most votes after having raised millions of dollars, plastering the airwaves with ads and winning an endorsement from his former boss, President Barack Obama. However, his four challengers say Emanuel's tenacious style and handling of some major city issues have left voters wanting a change.
He needs more than 50 percent to win re-election outright in the nonpartisan race. Otherwise, he'll have to go head-to-head with the runner up, which could be embarrassing for the incumbent, who enjoys not only a huge financial advantage but the backing of business leaders and the endorsement of the city's major newspapers.
The key will be turnout, which could rival numbers four years ago when Mayor Richard Daley retired after more than two decades and the race was wide open. Already, early voting numbers - pushed by all the candidates - have bested 2011 levels, with a more than 20 percent increase despite a blast of cold weather.
Turnout was light early Tuesday, as wind chills dipped below zero, said Chicago Board of Elections spokesman James Allen. Temperatures are forecast to rise as the day progresses.
Several voters casting ballots in Englewood on the South Side said they were supporting Emanuel because he is positive on issues such as jobs, education and safer neighborhoods.
"He's bringing big corporations here to give the guys getting out of prison hope," said Willie King, a 56-year-old retired janitor. "Rahm has all (those) contacts and he is getting those corporations here, so he is giving people hope they can get a good job."
Emanuel has campaigned on the idea that his tested leadership is what the city needs.
"You gave me a chance to make the tough decisions this city needed, and we've improved our schools, our infrastructure, and our public safety," he told supporters in an email Monday. "But there's more work to be done, and I'll need your help to make sure we can continue the progress we've made."
The Democrat is facing Cook County Commissioner Jesus Garcia, Alderman Bob Fioretti, businessman Willie Wilson and perennial candidate William Walls.
They've put Emanuel on the defensive over his handling of a contract dispute that led to Chicago's first teachers' strike in 25 years, the closing of nearly 50 neighborhood schools and a spike in violent crime. They have also criticized his sometimes-combative style.
"In Chicago neighborhoods, people are largely turned off," Garcia said. "They have found him to be distant and uncaring, not really engaging in neighborhoods."
Several South Side voters disagreed, saying they felt Emanuel was compelled to close underperforming schools and those where enrollment had declined.
"If they ain't performing, what are you going to do? Keep them going?" said Ernest Hudson, a 49-year-old unemployed maintenance worker. "You can take that money and spend it somewhere else where it can do some good."
Emanuel has argued that he made decisions that helped the city and challenged the status quo. He's countered claims by taking a neighborhood-focused approach to the campaign trail, including talking up his push to increase the city's minimum wage, from $8.25 to $13 by 2019.
Also, Tuesday, Chicago voters will decide several hotly contested aldermanic races. Election officials hope turnout will match 2011 levels. Roughly 42 percent of eligible Chicago voters cast ballots that year, up from 33 percent in 2007.
---
Associated Press writer Don Babwin contributed to this report.
---
Follow Sophia Tareen at http://ift.tt/QAfWEc
from Chicago - The Huffington Post http://ift.tt/1wknwew
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