Gainer won’t dive into mayoral race against Emanuel

Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer said Saturday that she will not join the race to unseat Mayor Rahm Emanuel in the 2019 election.

For months, Gainer had appeared poised to jump into the crowded field of contenders. She was viewed as a major potential threat to Emanuel who could draw votes from women as well as residents of both the Northwest and Southwest sides — and who had more cash in her campaign coffers than any challenger.

“I love Chicago and want to move it forward, and for me the biggest part of the decision is, where can I have the most impact?” Gainer said. “Right now, I think i can have most impact on the outside.”

She said she’s focusing her efforts on Aon’s Chicago Apprenticeship Network for young adults, as well as the Cook County Land Bank that she founded, an initiative that acquires vacant properties for resale to predominantly black and Hispanic developers who rehabilitate those properties and create affordable housing.

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Gainer was first elected to the Cook County Board in 2010 and won the Democratic nomination for a third term in March from a district that includes much of the North Side lakefront and the Northwest Side.

She had $843,265 in her campaign war chest as of June 30, second only to Emanuel’s mammoth $7.56 million — a total that’s $2.3 million more than all challengers combined.

Ten people have thrown their hats into the ring against Emanuel: former Chicago Police Board President Lori Lightfoot, fired Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy, former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas, Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown, Chicago Principals and Administrators Association President Troy LaRaviere, tech entrepreneur Neal Sales-Griffin, millionaire businessman Willie Wilson, community activist Ja’Mal Green, attorney John Kozlar and DePaul student Matthew Roney.

Gainer said she hasn’t decided who she’ll support — and that no deals were made to get her to drop out.

“I have regular conversations with Lori. I’ve known Paul for many years. I see the mayor from time to time . . . That wasn’t a factor,” she said.