March 20--Mayor Rahm Emanuel and challenger Jesus "Chuy" Garcia will each accept endorsements from key constituencies Friday as they try to shore up support ahead of the April 7 election.
Emanuel will head to the West Pullman neighborhood on the Far South Side to receive the endorsement of "several influential African-American ministers," according to his campaign.
And Garcia will get the endorsement of state Rep. Will Guzzardi, whose election win last fall has made him a darling of local progressives.
Garcia's event will take place near McCormick Place, site of a planned new hotel that progressives have been critical of because the project is financed in part by tens of millions of dollars in special tax district funds they say should be going to schools and other neighborhood projects.
On hand for the Guzzardi endorsement will be representatives of the progressive political organization Reclaim Chicago, according to the Garcia campaign. Reclaim Chicago, a group of labor unions and other grassroots organizations, has claimed credit for helping progressive aldermanic candidates score wins and push incumbents into runoffs in the recent city election.
While he's trying to fire up his base, Garcia is also attempting to close his steep funding deficit against the well-financed Emanuel. The Guzzardi endorsement comes a day after Garcia traveled to Los Angeles for two fundraisers.
Emanuel's event will take place in the 34th Ward, where he got 45 percent of the vote in the first round election in February after collecting 60 percent there in his win in 2011, according to the Chicago Board of Elections. With African-American businessman Willie Wilson now out of the race and Emanuel ally Carrie Austin serving as the alderman of the ward, the mayor will be hoping to improve on his performance there.
Emanuel is also scheduled Friday night to attend the funeral of the Rev. Willie T. Barrow, civil rights activist and co-founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.
And Garcia is set to sit down for a televised talk about ethics with Better Government Association President Andy Shaw. He's also slated to tour the Altgeld Gardens Chicago Housing Authority complex on the Far South Side.
jebyrne@tribpub.com
