Politics

It is said that all politics is local. In Chicago the most local elections are those for alderman; that’s because the most local of elected officials is that of alderman. Though his or her official duties are those of a legislator, the alderman functions as a mini-mayor of his or her ward, of which there are 50 in the city.

While of late most incumbents have been re-elected with ease or have been unopposed, that hasn’t always been the case. And, when a vacancy does arise, usually there are many candidates.

Edgewater has been divided into as many as four wards and as few as two.  It has never been encompased in a single ward. 

Aldermen:  Click here for a list of all the aldermen who have represented Edgewater’s wards beginning in 1923.

Elections: Click here for a list of aldermanic election results for Edgewater wards.

Ward Boundaries: Click here for an article on the changes in ward boundaries within Edgewater beginning in 1889 [Note: the article was written in 2010 and thus does not account for the most recent redistricting]. Click here to see the full set of ward maps from 1889 to the present.

Mayors: Two Chicago mayors were Edgewater residents.  They were William E. Dever (1923-27) and Martin H. Kennelly (1947-1955).  While mayor, Dever lived in a three-flat he owned at 5901 N. Kenmore and Kennelly lived at the Edgewater Beach Apartments, 5555 N. Sheridan Road.