The brand new mayor in town for Chicago is Rahm Emanuel

The Chicago mayor political election outcomes are in. Voters have spoken, and Rahm Emanuel has been elected mayor of Chicago. Emanuel left his post as the fiery White House Chief of Staff in the Obama White House to run for the post. His candidacy was challenged legally, but he overcame those hurdles. He will take over in May, when he is inaugurated.

The majority of votes go to Emanuel

A second runoff election was expected to be needed in the Chicago mayoral election. This would be because over 50 percent of votes wouldn't be received by candidates. In some areas, for instance Chicago, a two-round voting system is implemented in the case that no candidate receives more than 50 percent of votes. Emanuel did not have to have a runoff to become mayor considering he got 55 percent of Chicago election votes, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Gery Chico, who is the previous Chief of Staff for Mayor Richard Daley who’s leaving, was the closes to Rahm Emanuel in votes. Chico's votes were low too though. Only 24 percent voted for him.

The legality of it all

In becoming the 55th Chicago mayor, Rahm Emanuel had legal challenges that blocked him. Since he was Chief of Staff for the Obama White House and didn't really live in Chicago, the candidacy was challenged in court that said he really was a resident of Washington, D.C., according to the Washington Post. However, a series of appeals that went to the Illinois Supreme Court, which found in favor of Emanuel. There were six candidates running against him. He won, clearly.

Emanuel replaces Chicago tale

The mayor that Emanuel is replacing has been Chicago Mayor since 1989, CBS reports. That is Mayor Richard M. Daley. Emanuel faces a budget deficit of $655 million and rising crime rates. In his first month in office, he promised to cut $75 million while adding 1,000 police officers to the City of Chicago.

Citations

Christian Science Monitor

csmonitor.com/USA/Elections/2011/0223/Chicago-election-results-catapult-Rahm-Emanuel-into-mayor-s-office/%28page%29/2

Washington Post

washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2011/02/22/ST2011022207071.html?sid=ST2011022207071

CBS News

cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20035263-503544.html