JEFFERSON PARK — An attorney with ties to Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Tuesday he would run to represent the 45th Ward on the Chicago City Council.
Michael S. Diaz, who works as an attorney for the state of Illinois in the department that regulates banks, said in a statement that he was running to represent Jefferson Park, Gladstone Park, Old Irving Park, and parts of Portage Park and Forest Glen because he is unhappy with the leadership of Ald. John Arena (45th).
"I think we can be progressive, build consensus within the community and City Council, and get things done," Diaz said in a statement.
Heather Cherone says that Diaz's recent move into the ward could rub some Northwest Siders the wrong way:
Diaz declined to be interviewed by DNAinfo Chicago, and referred questions to Thomas Bowen of New Chicago Consulting. Bowen served as Emanuel's top aide before leaving City Hall in 2012 to work as a political consultant.
Bowen also ran Bill Daley's brief campaign for governor. Daley served as President Barack Obama's chief of staff from 2011-12.
Diaz, who is expecting a baby with his wife in January, is the third candidate to challenge Arena's bid for re-election to the City Council, where he is one of the most frequent critics of Emanuel.
Chicago Police Lt. John Garrido, who lost to Arena in 2011 by 30 votes, said he welcomed Diaz to the race.
"Our alderman is disconnected with our community," Garrido said. "If he would simply do the job he was elected to do, he wouldn't have so many challengers."
Michelle Baert, who publishes a website and Facebook page filled with listings for family-friendly activities as the 45th Ward Mom, and is also running for alderman, declined to comment about Diaz's candidacy.
If Chicago Forward, a political-action committee designed to help re-elect Emanuel and aldermen who share his agenda, supports Diaz, his candidacy could significantly change the dynamics of the race that had been shaping up as a rematch between Arena and Garrido, who are on opposite sides of many community issues, including a proposal to reduce Milwaukee Avenue from four lanes to two lanes in Gladstone Park to improve the flow of traffic and expand bicycle lanes.
Diaz has lived in the 45th Ward since 2012, when he and his wife bought a house in Jefferson Park, said Tim Nazanin, a spokesman for Diaz who works with Bowen.
"Growing up in a single parent household I knew that if I was going to succeed in life I would need the help of others," Diaz said in the statement, recalling his youth playing football at Portage Park. "I owe much of what I am to the community."
Diaz attended Weber High School in Belmont Cragin, which closed in 1999.
A 2006 graduate of the Metropolitan Leadership Institute, Diaz grew up in Logan Square and Humboldt Park. In 2008, he formed a campaign committee to run for state representative from the second district, which is made up of several South Side neighborhoods, including Armour Square and Bridgeport.
Diaz ultimately decided not to run for that seat, Nazanin said. He has not yet formed a campaign committee for the 45th Ward, according to state records.
A graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Diaz earned his law degree at Loyola University Chicago.
In addition, Diaz is the treasurer of Prevention First, a statewide non-profit organization that works to prevent teen drug use. He was a founding partner of the law firm Monteagudo, Lopez and Diaz.
Arena did not respond to a request for comment about Diaz’s candidacy.
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