Illinois court throws Emanuel off Chicago ballot

But on Monday, the former White House chief of staff was waging a desperate bid to keep his campaign alive after an Illinois appeals court kicked him off the ballot for not meeting a residency requirement. The surprise decision threw the race into disarray with less than a month to go.

Emanuel's lawyers quickly sought help from the Illinois Supreme Court, asking the justices to stop the appellate ruling and to hear an appeal as soon as possible. But time was running short, since the Chicago Board of Elections planned to begin printing ballots without Emanuel's name within days.

"I have no doubt that we will in the end prevail at this effort. This is just one turn in the road," Emanuel said, adding that the "people of the city of Chicago deserve the right to make the decision on who they want to be their next mayor."

Emanuel's rivals, who have been overshadowed by his name recognition and deep pockets, immediately sought to take advantage of the threat to his candidacy, asking voters to take another look at their campaigns.

The three members of the appeals court panel, all fellow Democrats, ruled 2-1 to overturn a lower-court ruling that would have kept his name on the Feb. 22 ballot.

The election board chairman, Langdon Neal, said there wasn't much time left to print ballots. Early voting was set to begin in just a week, on Jan. 31.

"We can't wait and stop what we're doing to adjust to every possibility that may occur," Neal said. "The possible situations that could occur are numerous."