The Council Wars were a racially polarized political conflict in the city of Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 from 1983-1986, centered on the Chicago City Council

Chicago City Council

The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 aldermen elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms...

.

The term came from a satirical comedy sketch of the same name written and performed by comedian and journalist Aaron Freeman

Aaron Freeman

Aaron Freeman is an American journalist, stand up comedian, author, cartoonist and blogger.Freeman has performed with The Second City. As a stand up comedian, he is a member of the quartet the Israeli/Palestinian Comedy Tour...

 in 1983, using the good-v.-evil plot line of the film Star Wars

Star Wars

Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...

as a device.

In 1983, U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 Harold Washington

Harold Washington

Harold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African-American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Early years and military service :...

 was elected Mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 of Chicago. Washington, who was black, was backed by reformist "independent" Democrats and dissident blacks. He had won the Democratic primary--the real contest in this overwhelmingly Democratic city--in a three-way contest against incumbent Mayor Jane Byrne

Jane Byrne

Jane Margaret Byrne was the first and to date only female Mayor of Chicago. She served from April 16, 1979 to April 29, 1983. Chicago is the largest city in the United States to have had a female mayor as of 2011.-Early political career:...

 and Richard M. Daley

Richard M. Daley

Richard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party, and former Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. He was the longest serving Chicago mayor, surpassing the tenure of his...

, son of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley

Richard J. Daley

Richard Joseph Daley served for 21 years as the mayor and undisputed Democratic boss of Chicago and is considered by historians to be the "last of the big city bosses." He played a major role in the history of the Democratic Party, especially with his support of John F...

. Byrne and Daley led rival factions of the white-dominated Democratic Party organization.

Though Washington won a plurality of the primary vote, "organization" Democrats won most of the 50 aldermanic seats in the City Council. Washington garnered the support of all 16 black aldermen, even those who had been organization supporters. He also had the support of four white reformers and one other white, Burton Natarus

Burton Natarus

Burton Natarus was Alderman of the 42nd Ward of Chicago from 1971 to 2007.-Early life:Natarus is a graduate of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. Later, he taught at Chicago’s Loyola University on the subject of local government. Natarus also served in the U.S. Army and the U.S...

, who had been a loyal organization man, but whose 42nd Ward voted for Washington.

The other 29 aldermen (28 whites and 1 Hispanic

Hispanic

Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

) formed an opposition group led by "the Eddies": 10th Ward alderman Ed Vrdolyak

Edward Vrdolyak

Edward Robert Vrdolyak is a noted Chicago lawyer and politician and a convicted felon. He was a powerful longtime Chicago Alderman and also head of the Cook County Democratic Party before running unsuccessfully for Mayor of Chicago as a Republican...

 and 14th Ward alderman Ed Burke

Ed Burke

Edward M. Burke is alderman of the 14th Ward of the City of Chicago. A member of the Democratic Party, he was first elected to the Chicago City Council in 1969, and represents part of the city's Southwest Side. Burke has been called Chicago's "most powerful alderman" by the Chicago Sun-Times...

. The "Vrdolyak 29" voted as a solid bloc. In the first session of the 1983-1987 term, the "Vrdolyak 29" voted themselves complete control of every Council committee. Over the next three years, they voted down all of the mayor's proposals and appropriations. They also voted down all of his appointments, which was purely symbolic, as the appointees could still serve as interim officeholders.

The Vrdolyak 29 had a majority of votes, but not enough to override Washington's veto, thus creating legislative gridlock. Chicago became known as "Beirut

Beirut

Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...

 by the Lake." Some legislation was passed and city budgets were approved, but it was a drawn out and ugly affair.

Council Wars ended in 1986. Washington's allies had sued the city in Federal court, claiming that the ward map drawn up after the 1980 Census

United States Census

The United States Census is a decennial census mandated by the United States Constitution. The population is enumerated every 10 years and the results are used to allocate Congressional seats , electoral votes, and government program funding. The United States Census Bureau The United States Census...

 had unfairly dispersed black and Hispanic voters. At that time, whites were about 40% of the city's population, blacks were also about 40%, and Hispanics were about 15%, but there were 33 white aldermen, only 16 blacks, and just 1 Hispanic.

In 1986, the court ruled in their favor, ordering modifications to the borders of seven wards, and also special elections in the modified wards. Washington's supporters gained three seats in the special elections, six weeks later the election of Luis Gutiérrez

Luis Gutiérrez

Luis Vicente Gutiérrez is an American politician and the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1993. Gutiérrez was the first Latino to be elected to Congress from the Midwest. From 1986 until his election to Congress he served as a member of the Chicago City Council representing the 26th ward...

 in the 26th ward run-off election gave Mayor Washington the 25th vote he needed to wrest control of the City Council. With the Council now split 25-25, the mayor could cast the deciding vote. A group of several remaining aldermen from the Vrdolyak 29, led by alderman Richard Mell

Richard Mell

Richard F. "Dick" Mell is an American politician and long-time member of the Chicago City Council. He is a Democrat. Mell is the chairman of the Rules Committee and has a history of feuding with former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley....

, went to Washington to promise future cooperation. They claimed that their previous opposition had been forced on them by the Eddies. The mayor now had a clear majority of the Council.

Washington was re-elected in 1987. In the same election, several pro-Washington challengers defeated ex-29 incumbent aldermen. However, before he had long to enjoy his new power, Washington died of a heart attack

Myocardial infarction

Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...

. Reform alderman David Orr became interim Mayor. The Council then selected a permanent replacement to serve until a special election. They chose alderman Eugene Sawyer

Eugene Sawyer

Eugene Sawyer was an American businessman and politician who served as Mayor of Chicago, Illinois as a member of the Democratic Party. He was the second African American to serve as mayor of Chicago....

. He was black, and had sided with Washington in Council Wars, but before 1983 he had been a reliable Organization man. Most of his support in the Council came from the old Vrdolyak bloc.

Disposition of the Council 1983-86

Below is a list of aldermen from 1983. Pro-Washington aldermen are marked with a W; those in the Vrdolyak 29 are marked with a V; those who are still serving on the council (as of 6-9-2011) are marked with an asterisk.

Ward	Name	Party	Race	Alliance
1	Fred Roti Fred Roti Fred B. Roti was a powerful and long serving Alderman of Chicago's First Ward. A federal jury convicted Roti on 11 counts of racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, bribery and extortion.- Background :...	Democratic	White	V
2	Bobby Rush Bobby Rush Bobby Lee Rush is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1993. He is a member of the Democratic Party.The district is located principally on the South Side of Chicago. It is a minority-majority district and has a higher percentage of African Americans than any other congressional district in...	Democratic	Black	W
3	Tyrone Kenner	Democratic	Black	W
4	Timothy C. Evans Timothy C. Evans Timothy C. Evans is the Chief Judge of the Cook County Circuit Court. He is the first black Chief Judge of the Cook County Circuit Court and a graduate of the John Marshall Law School in Chicago. He was first elected to the bench in 1992....	Democratic	Black	W
5	Lawrence Bloom	Democratic	White	W
6	Eugene Sawyer Eugene Sawyer Eugene Sawyer was an American businessman and politician who served as Mayor of Chicago, Illinois as a member of the Democratic Party. He was the second African American to serve as mayor of Chicago....	Democratic	Black	W
7	William Beavers William Beavers William M. Beavers is a County Commissioner for District 4 of Cook County, Illinois, which encompasses part of Chicago's South Side and southern suburbs. He previously was an alderman of the 7th Ward in Chicago. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the Chicago City Council from 1983 to...	Democratic	Black	W
8	Marian Humes	Democratic	Black	W
9	Perry Hutchinson	Democratic	Black	W
10	Edward Vrdolyak Edward Vrdolyak Edward Robert Vrdolyak is a noted Chicago lawyer and politician and a convicted felon. He was a powerful longtime Chicago Alderman and also head of the Cook County Democratic Party before running unsuccessfully for Mayor of Chicago as a Republican...	Democratic	White	V
11	Patrick Huels	Democratic	White	V
12	Aloysius Majerczyk	Democratic	White	V
13	John Madrzyk	Democratic	White	V
14	Ed Burke Ed Burke Edward M. Burke is alderman of the 14th Ward of the City of Chicago. A member of the Democratic Party, he was first elected to the Chicago City Council in 1969, and represents part of the city's Southwest Side. Burke has been called Chicago's "most powerful alderman" by the Chicago Sun-Times... *	Democratic	White	V
15	Frank Brady	Democratic	White	V
16	Anna Langford Anna Langford Anna Langford was an American politician and lawyer who served on the Chicago City Council in Chicago, Illinois. Langford became the first African American woman elected to the Chicago City Council in 1971...	Democratic	Black	W
17	Allan Streeter	Democratic	Black	W
18	Robert Kellam	Democratic	White	V
19	Michael Sheahan	Democratic	White	V
20	Clifford Kelley	Democratic	Black	W
21	Niles Sherman	Democratic	Black	W
22	Frank Stemberk	Democratic	White	V
23	William Krystyniak	Democratic	White	V
24	William Henry William Henry William Henry may refer to:*William Henry , American gunsmith and Pennsylvania delegate to Continental Congress*William Henry , representative in the House of Burgesses...	Democratic	Black	W
25	Vito Marzullo	Democratic	White	V
26	Michael Nardulli	Democratic	White	V
27	Wallace Davis	Democratic	Black	W
28	Ed Smith Ed Smith (alderman) - Early life :Smith earned his bachelor’s degree from Alcorn State University in Lorman, Mississippi and his master’s degree from Northeastern Illinois University. Smith has written two books: Love the Town Couldn’t Stop and Almost to Late...	Democratic	Black	W
29	Danny K. Davis Danny K. Davis For other persons named Danny Davis, please see Daniel Davis .Daniel K. Davis is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...	Democratic	Black	W
30	George Hagopian	Democratic	White	V
31	Miguel Santiago	Democratic	Hispanic	V
32	Theris Gabinski	Democratic	White	V
33	Richard Mell Richard Mell Richard F. "Dick" Mell is an American politician and long-time member of the Chicago City Council. He is a Democrat. Mell is the chairman of the Rules Committee and has a history of feuding with former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.... *	Democratic	White	V
34	Wilson Frost Wilson Frost Wilson Frost is a former Chicago city alderman. In 1976, upon the death of longtime mayor Richard J. Daley, Frost declared that he was now acting mayor, based upon his reading of the city charter and the fact that he was serving as President Pro Tempore of the City Council...	Democratic	Black	W
35	Joseph Kotlarz	Democratic	White	V
36	William Banks William Banks William Joseph Panebianco Banks was alderman of the 36th ward in Chicago from 1983 to 2009.- Early career :Banks is Italian-American; to avoid anti-Italian bigotry, Banks' father, currency exchange owner Vincenzo Giuseppe Panebianco, anglicized his name to James Joseph and added "Banks" to their...	Democratic	White	V
37	Frank Damato	Democratic	White	V
38	Thomas Cullerton	Democratic	White	V
39	Anthony Laurino	Democratic	White	V
40	Patrick J. O'Connor*	Democratic	White	V
41	Roman Pucinski Roman Pucinski Roman Conrad Pucinski was an American Democratic politician from Chicago, Illinois. He was a U.S. Representative from 1959 to 1973, and alderman from the 41st Ward of Chicago from 1973 to 1991...	Democratic	White	V
42	Burton Natarus Burton Natarus Burton Natarus was Alderman of the 42nd Ward of Chicago from 1971 to 2007.-Early life:Natarus is a graduate of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. Later, he taught at Chicago’s Loyola University on the subject of local government. Natarus also served in the U.S. Army and the U.S...	Democratic	White	W
43	Martin Oberman	Democratic	White	W
44	Bernard Hansen	Democratic	White	V
45	Gerald McLaughlin	Democratic	White	V
46	Jerome M. Orbach	Democratic	White	V
47	Eugene Schulter Eugene Schulter Gene Schulter was alderman of the 47th ward of the City of Chicago. He was first elected in 1975 and served until his retirement in 2011.- Early life :...	Democratic	White	V
48	Marion Volini	Democratic	White	W
49	David Orr	Democratic	White	W
50	Bernard Stone Bernard Stone Bernard "Berny" L. Stone was alderman of the 50th Ward of the City of Chicago, Illinois. The 50th ward encompasses part of Chicago's far North Side and includes the West Ridge, West Rogers Park and Peterson Park neighborhoods....	Democratic	White	V