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Among the myriad political parlor games at City Hall, one of the longest running is the annual speculation about whether Northwest Side Ald. Richard Mell will finally step down.
Mell, 74 and the second-longest serving alderman on the City Council, said today that he’s always thinking about retiring, and nodded to the boy-who-cries-wolf nature of his yearly decision.
“I’ve been retiring for the past five years,” said Mell, 33rd. “Sure, it’s tempting. I think it’s tempting for everybody (on the City Council).”
“This is premature,” Mell said of a report he was on his way out. “I haven’t made any decision, and I may not make a decision (to retire).”
The alderman, who chairs the powerful City Council Rules Committee, said he would like his daughter, State Rep. Deborah Mell, to succeed him when he does retire. Deborah Mell would do a good job on the council, her father said, adding he thinks she’s interested in the post.
The alderman, however, would not say whether he has told Mayor Rahm Emanuel he would like his daughter appointed to his seat if he decides to retire.
Adding to the confusion, The Civil Rights Agenda, a group that works for gay rights, sent out a notice applauding Deborah Mell’s imminent appointment as alderman. But Rick Garcia, political director for the organization, said they were basing their announcement on a Sun-Times report and said Deborah Mell had not confirmed the move.
Deborah Mell could not immediately be reached for comment.
Ald. Mell: Reports of retiring are 'premature'
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Ald. Mell: Reports of retiring are 'premature'
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Ald. Mell: Reports of retiring are 'premature'
