Chicago rapper and activist Che “Rhymefest” Smith was defeated Tuesday in his bid to become Alderman of his city’s 20th Ward. The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Smith received 45.4 percent of the vote while his opponent, the incumbent Willie Cochran, managed to garner 54.6 percent.
It had been a long road to this unfortunate defeat for Smith. Earlier in the campaign it seemed as if he would not get a chance to run at all do to some concerns raised regarding whether or not Smith met the residency requirements for candidates. But thanks to appeals on his part his right to pursue the alderman position was upheld.
However, Rhymefest is not prepared to accept this defeat. He is now alleging what he calls massive voter fraud. He and his lawyer appeared on Chicago’s ABC affiliate this morning. Smith declared, “We want to ensure that it’s fair and that every vote is counted, and that people who didn’t live in the ward of vacant lots weren’t people who were voting. We want to make sure that the 20th Ward voices are heard…We concede nothing.” DX will keep you updated as this story progresses.
