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Long-standing mayor of Chicago, Richard Daley, has announced that he will not seek a record seventh term and will step down when his term ends in 2011. He made the surprise announcement at a routine press conference 7 September. “Simply put, it’s time. Time for me. And time for Chicago to move on”, he said.

Daley, a Democrat, leaves behind a legacy of major urban renewal, and made Chicago a world-class city for tourism, cuisine and the arts. It was Daley who set a national trend by pulling down housing projects, saying they were a failed social experiment. He imposed himself on the Chicago school board and forced through important reforms.

Daley has been “Mayor for Life” since 1989. When he steps down he will have beaten the record 21 years set his father, Richard J. Daley, by several months. Daley Sr. was mayor of Chicago 1955-1976.

Links to other sites: Chicago Tribune, New York Times