There’s a peculiar tango being danced in the 32nd Ward committeeman’s race.
Instead, he’s supporting state rep John Fritchey, who did not support him when he ran against Matlak, even though Fritchey’s opponent, Roger Romanelli, was one of Waguespack’s strongest supporters.
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It’s bewildering; so let me try to explain what’s going on. In the aftermath of his hard-fought victory over Matlak, many of Waguespack’s supporters urged him to run for committeeman. As they know, a committeeman is an unpaid party position, which has lost much of its clout and power in the age of the patronage-limiting Shakman decree.
Almost immediately, Fritchey began preparing to run. In July he announced his campaign. “I have a lot of ideas to invigorate the party,” says Fritchey.
Of course, neither Gabinski nor Matlak wound up running. Romanelli announced in October, claiming Waguespack’s mantle of reform even without the alderman’s support.
As the rhetoric shows, the race, only a few weeks old, is shaping up as an entertaining humdinger. Fritchey calls Romanelli a neophyte who knows nothing about politics and didn’t even bother to vote in four primaries.
Waguespack’s miffed at Fritchey on another count. Instead of going to the local community group, as Waguespack requires, Fritchey filed a request to change the zoning of a lot on the 1400 block of W. Lill Street directly with the city. When Waguespack found out about the proposed zoning change, he called Alderman Banks’s office and asked him to defer the matter. Fritchey dismisses the matter as an oversight; the request is only held while Fritchey brings it before the neighborhood group.
