Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley won't seek a 7th term | News | Dallas News
Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley won't seek a 7th term
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Tammy Webber,  The Associated Press
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CHICAGO - Mayor Richard M. Daley, who has presided over the nation's third-largest city for 21 years, as his father did before him, announced Tuesday that he will not run for a seventh term, saying the time "just feels right."
Daley, 68, said he had been thinking about not running for several months and became comfortable with his decision over the past several weeks.
"I've always believed that every person, especially public officials, must understand when it's time to move on," Daley said at a news conference, his wife Maggie by his side. "For me, that time is now."
He called the announcement "a personal decision, no more, no less" and said he and his family now begin a "new phase of our lives."
The announcement was made with little warning but was not a surprise.
Daley had refused to say whether he would run again, fueling speculation that he might not, and his wife has been battling cancer.
"It's a surprise because there's been a Daley in the political system for so long," said Alan Gitelson, a Loyola University of Chicago political-science professor. "There's always been this presence. It's been really part and parcel of the identity of the city to have a Daley in the mayor's office."
Daley was first elected mayor in 1989, following in the footsteps of his father, Richard J. Daley, who died of a heart attack in 1976 during his 21st year in office.
Cook County Clerk David Orr said he did not think anyone would have seriously challenged Daley if he had run for re-election, but Tuesday's announcement means "the whole political landscape changes enormously."
Daley's announcement leaves an open door for White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, who said in April during a television interview that "it's no secret" he'd like to run for mayor of Chicago someday.
Emanuel, 50, is a one-time Daley adviser and a Chicago native. He was an Illinois congressman until he resigned to take his current White House post.
Others whose names have surfaced as possible candidates are Democratic U.S. Reps. Jesse Jackson Jr. and Luis Gutierrez, and Chicago Alderman Bob Fioretti.
During his tenure, Daley presided over some of the most dramatic changes in Chicago history.
He assumed command of the floundering school system in 1995 and replaced entrenched bureaucrats with tough, results-oriented administrators. Homework became mandatory, and the "social promotion" of underperforming students was halted. Test scores climbed steadily.
Tammy Webber,