Emanuel Case Likely Won't Reach U.S. Supreme Court
CHICAGO (WBBM/CBS) -- Could the case of Rahm Emanuel's residency go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court?
Not likely, say legal experts.
LISTEN: Newsradio 780 Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports
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The Illinois Supreme Court will decide if state Appellate Court judges were right to throw Emanuel off the ballot for failing to satisfy the one-year residency requirement to run for mayor. Also Thursday, former Gov. James Thompson urged the court to keep Emanuel on the ballot.
Veteran election attorney Michael Dorf says it is unlikely the case will move on to the federal court system.
For one thing, Dorf said, there is no constitutional issue that has been raised.
"There has been sort of a rule in election cases that you need to raise constitutional claims now, rather than waiting until the Illinois Supreme Court rules and then suddenly create a new constitutional claim," Dorf said.
Also, Dorf says the U.S. Supreme Court is traditionally reluctant to intervene in local elections, and this is, at its heart, a residency case based on state law.
The Appellate Court ruled Monday that Emanuel's name must be removed from the ballot, disagreeing that his claims of intent to return to Chicago and the fact that he left for national service exempted him from the one-year requirement.
On Tuesday, the justices of the state Supreme Court ordered that Emanuel's name be restored to the ballot as they review the case. A final decision may come before the end of the week.
Emanuel has continued taking his campaign to the streets of Chicago. Today, he pushed his plan to add 1,000 police officers and to increase after school programs for children.
LISTEN: Newsradio 780's Craig Dellimore Reports
