Eye on Chicago race? Tell voters now

Just when you were glad to see the election season hit the home stretch, along comes the new twist of Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley announcing he'll retire from the job he's held for 21 years.

Daley's surprise immediately set off a round of speculation and jockeying to identify those who will seek to replace him in the 2011 election. The field of possible contenders is wide open.

Unfortunately, some of those contenders already are on a ballot - running for some other state or county job. Running for a job that in their minds suddenly has become a fallback.

That awkward situation makes the Chicago mayoral campaign far from a spectator sport for people who live in the suburbs.

Consider this scenario: A victor in a countywide or statewide race on Nov. 2 almost immediately turns around and files petitions by the Nov. 22 deadline to run for Daley's job. Instead of the sheriff or attorney general or tax assessor they meant to put in office, voters get a campaigner and fund-raiser racing full-bore toward the Feb. 22 Chicago mayoral election, with a possible runoff in April.

Among those who are on the November ballot but whose names have been floated for Daley's job, though they haven't confirmed they're in the race, are Tom Dart, seeking re-election as Cook County sheriff; Cook County Commissioner Forrest Claypool, running as an independent candidate for county assessor; and Lisa Madigan, running for her third term as Illinois attorney general. There are likely to be others.

Any county or state vacancy left behind by the new mayor gets filled by appointment until a 2012 special election, with the Cook County Board or the governor doing the honors.

The mess is in many ways unavoidable.

The person who's the best candidate for state or county office might well be the top contender to run the city of Chicago. Admonishing candidates to choose between one race and the other would stand to leave too many qualified people shut out altogether, even assuming they took our advice.

So all we ask is this - that candidates who want to be Chicago mayor respect voters enough to put their cards on the table now, rather than waiting to get in line after they wake up Nov. 3 with a different title in front of their names. At least that will give voters some say in how they want this to unfold.

With Illinois government in critical condition and Cook County bleeding red ink, it's crucial that these important elections not be overshadowed by the race to succeed Daley. Voters at least deserve the chance to go to the polls Nov. 2 with their eyes wide open.