CHICAGO — Rahm Emanuel, candidate for mayor of Chicago, stood before the microphone in the cavernous warehouse and, in a somber voice, announced that he was finally getting a chance to publicly utter a four-letter word.
He paused for comic timing, then said the word: jobs.
“There,” he said, “I already feel better.”
The joke was Emanuel’s nod to his reputation as “Rahmbo,” the bad boy of the White House who has served two presidents as a tough, smart and highly effective political operative — albeit one with a blistering, back-alley vocabulary, a sometimes abrasive style and a relentless drive.
But in the mayoral race, the swagger and hard edges have given way to a calm, almost serene candidate. He talks local issues — elevated train lines, bike paths and after-school programs — refuses to be goaded and has harnessed his drive for City Hall into a $13 million juggernaut that has left rivals choking on his dust.
Emanuel heads into Tuesday’s contest with a round- the-clock loop of TV and radio commercials featuring praise from his two former bosses — Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama — endorsements from the city’s two major newspapers and a decent shot at winning more than 50 percent of the vote, which would prevent an April 5 runoff. The winner will replace Mayor Richard M. Daley, who is not seeking a seventh term.
So, is Rahm Emanuel the one-time ballet student, the amiable guy who greets commuters with a friendly slap on the back and confesses to kids he was bullied as a boy? Or is he the foul-mouthed terminator lampooned on “Saturday Night Live,” the warrior who, Obama once joked, had adapted Machiavelli’s “The Prince” for dance with “a lot of kicks below the waist”?
Emanuel has a ready answer, knowing his take-no-prisoners style is what everyone talks about.
“Am I strong and determined and tough and vigorous?” he asked in a recent interview. “Yeah. I have a reputation because I have fought very tough battles against the NRA, against Wall Street, against the insurance companies, specifically on items that have delivered reform. And two presidents asked me to serve them because I’ve never been scared to take on tough assignments on behalf of the changes they wanted to bring.”
Among three main opponents, Gery Chico, a lawyer with a gold-plated resume — his past jobs include Daley’s chief of staff, president of the Chicago school board and the park district — has proved the strongest competitor. He has raised millions and been endorsed by several aldermen, including one of the city’s most powerful, as well as police and firefighters unions.
The two others are City Clerk Miguel del Valle, who has won support among progressives, and former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, who made history in 1992 by being the first black woman elected to the Senate. A group of black leaders endorsed her as a unity candidate, but her campaign has been marred by gaffes.
All three main rivals have tried to cut into Emanuel’s whopping lead in the polls by putting him on the defensive.
