The fight has begun over when the next mayoral election will be held in the city of Chicago. There is apparently some confusion about whether state law requires the election to take place in 1989 or 1991.

The late Mayor Harold Washington’s term of office would have ended in 1991. The current mayor, Eugene Sawyer, who was elected mayor by the city council after Washington’s death, is pushing for the election to be held off until that time. It appears he has a great deal of support on the city council, who will decide when the election is to be held.

Both sides are saying the state law governing the situation is unclear. And faced with an unclear statute, each side wants its own interpretation of the law to control the determination of when the election must be held. As usual with Chicago politics, both sides are self-serving.

However, while those on the side of a 1989 election take that position for their own benefit, it is the position most beneficial to the voters as well. The people of Chicago are entitled to elect their own mayor. They shouldn’t have to wait nearly four years to voice their opinions about the city council’s choice for the mayoral appointee.

If the law is unclear about whether an election should be held in 1989 or 1991, then the proper question to ask is not when must the election be held, but whether it is possible to legally hold the election in 1989. If it is, that’s when it should be done.

The people of Chicago did not elect Eugene Sawyer to be their mayor. They might decide they want to keep him as mayor, or they might decide there is a better candidate. Whatever the people decide, they have the right to make their own choices.

The majority of the members of the city council have no business forcing their opinions on their constituents. If they are successful in holding off an election until 1991, Eugene Sawyer will have been handed a four-year term of office without ever standing for popular election. Whether he’s the best person for the office or not, that’s not right—or particularly democratic.

Hopefully the Coalition on Political Honesty is keeping its eyes on this situation and is ready to take it to the court system should the city council vote against the people.