Special Election To Be Held For Former IL Congressman Rahm Emanuel's Seat

January 6, 2009 6:36 a.m. EST

Chicago, IL (AHN) - Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has set the date for the special election to fill the U.S. House seat of incoming White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel.

Blagojevich, who is required by state law to decide when to hold the election, issued a writ of election on Monday designated April 7, a Tuesday, as the date for the special contest for the seat. A primary will be held on March 3, also a Tuesday, ahead of the election.

The disgraced Democratic governor, who is accused of trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama's Senate seat, set the dates following the recommendations of Chicago Election Board executive director Lance Gough and Cook County Clerk David Orr that the schedule would allow for increased voter turnout.

"I am pleased to set these election dates so that the people of the Fifth Congressional District can have a representative in Congress as quickly as possible," Blagojevich said in a statement. "With our nation in a recession, we need to ensure that Illinois' voice is being represented in Washington D.C. to get our economy back on track."

Emanuel officially resigned after six years representing the 5th congressional district on Friday, four days before the new 111th Congress convenes. Blagojevich was required to set a date within five days after Friday. Furthermor, the election must be held within 115 days after the seat officially becomes vacant.

The field of potential and declared candidates for the seat number around 20 and include state Rep. Sara Feigenholtz and Cook County commissioner Mike Quigley.

A longtime friend of the President-elect, Emanuel had at first considered the costs to his family of serving as White House chief of staff. "I used to joke in the White House that on Fridays, I would say: it's two more workdays till Monday," he told WLS-TV in November. "When I was in the White House, I didn't have children... and I do have children now. I have a family. And so you weigh these-what is the opportunity for your children, and what is the cost?"

Prior to becoming House Democratic Caucus chair, Emanuel headed the finance committee of the presidential campaign of Bill Clinton. He served as Clinton's senior adviser at the White House from 1993, and was chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee from 2005 to 2007.

His brief tenure as the president-elect's chief of staff has been marred by close scrutiny and a possible subpoena.

An internal report of staff contacts between the transition team and Blagojevich's office said last month that only one member of the transition staff, Emanuel, had spoken with the embattled governor and his staff about Obama's Senate seat. It added that there is "no indication of inappropriate discussions with the Governor or anyone from his office about a 'deal' or a quid pro quo arrangement in which he would receive a personal benefit in return for any specific appointment to fill the vacancy."

Blagojevich's attorney, Ed Genson, had asked that key Obama aides, including Emanuel, testify before the special state committee investigating whether the governor should be impeached. But federal prosecutors had sent the impeachment panel a request saying calling Emanuel as a witness would compromise the federal probe of Blagojevich.