Election officials have scheduled a status hearing for Rahm Emanuel as the continue to sort through more than 30 challenges to his mayoral eligibility.
Opponents say Emanuel shouldn't be allowed to run for mayor because he forfeited residency when he moved to Washington, D.C. to work in the Obama White House as Chief of Staff.
Emanuel says he still qualifies because he owns a home, pays property taxes and votes in Chicago elections.
Election lawyer Burt Odelson, one of the principal objectors to Emanuel's residency, plans to call a number of witnesses Monday when testimony begins in the hearing. Odelson would like to call Emanuel, his wife Amy Rule, Emanuel's tenant Rod Halpin and his wife Laurie Halpin to the stand. He also plans to summon the real estate agents involved in the renting of Emanuel's home.
On Thursday, Rep. Mike Quigley, who replaced Emanuel in congress after he left to work in the White House, slammed the process that's designed to bump Emanuel off the ballot.
“I get it -- it’s a rough-and-tumble business, but this thing to me is a bridge too far," Quigley told the Chicago News Cooperative. "Let Rahm deal with the sticks and stones of the business."
He criticized Odelson for requesting the school applications for Emanuel's children.
"This is classic Odelson," Quigley said to the News Cooperative. "You get a lot of quality people who see stuff like this and say, 'I don’t want to get involved in politics. It’s a dirty business.'"
Politics
Also on Thursday, state comptroller Dan Hynes endorsed Emanuel for mayor.
