Early voting has started in the Chicago mayoral election and I am being absolutely deluged with robocalls. They’re coming in at the rate of from one to four an hour. I honestly don’t know why. Everybody knows the outcome already.
Emanuel will be re-elected. There might be a run-off. In fact there’s likely to be a run-off with five candidates, each with his own constituency. Based on current polls of registered voters certain to vote in the election, Emanuel has 42%, Cook County Commissioner Chuy Garcia has 18%, Alderman Bob Fioretti has 10%, Willie Wilson has 7%, and Dock Walls has 2%. I’m not even sure that one or more of the candidates pulling out and throwing his support behind Emanuel will avoid a run-off. In some sense every other candidate is an anti-Emanuel protest candidate.
He only won by 55% when he was first elected. In Chicago terms that’s a squeaker.
