After endorsing Mike Quigley in the 5th Congressional District special election today (no surprise there), the Chicago Tribune editorial board goes on to note that Quigley's successor on the county board will be chosen at an April 11 public meeting of the Democratic committeemen whose wards overlap with his county district. They asked Quigley to list the qualifications he would prefer for his replacement.  Here's what he gave them:

- Experience with county issues -- particularly the need to radically reinvent county government -- would let the newcomer be effective from Day One.

- This board seat needs to deliver a reliably unwavering vote for reform—not a "most of the time" vote for reform.

- Independence from political bosses and other forces of clout. Example: "If you're doing the job the right way," Quigley says, "organized groups won't always like you."

Now here's the subtext:

Both Sara Feigenholtz and Quigley chief-of-staff Kimberly Walz are known to be interested in the position, as Greg Hinz noted a couple of weeks ago:

[S]tate Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chicago, who finished third in the Democratic primary won by Mr. Quigley, has emerged as the clear front runner to get his current job as a county commissioner.

The choice will be be made by Democratic ward chiefs in Quigley's district, and while Mr. Quigley is pushing his chief of staff, Kim Walz, for the job, the inside money is on Ms. Feigenholtz.

Walz is impressive and the Tribune more or less endorsed her for the position in a March 5 editorial:

One excellent way to continue the reform agenda at the County Board is to replace Quigley with his chief of staff, Kimberly Walz. She's a whip-smart policy wonk who has helped Quigley shape proposals to reinvent county government -- and she's uniformly respected by the County Building's scarce supply of true reformers.

While the Tribune doesn't single Walz out in their piece today, it seems pretty obvious that the editorial board -- using Quigley's carefully tailored criteria -- is attempting to frame Feigenholtz as unqualified for the post: Unlike Walz, she hasn't been focusing on the county for years.  Instead, she's been forming alliances with some "regular" Democrats in Springfield. 

But it should be noted that, while Feigenholtz may not qualify as a "reformer" in the Tribune's eyes, she brings other assets to the table.  Specifically, her passion for health care policy, which represents a huge part of the county board's responsibility.  

It will be interesting to see who else shows up to express interest in the post at the meeting on April 11:

[Ald. Tom] Tunney knows of at least 10 people expressing interest in the post. They'll have the opportunity to address the committeemen -- after which the committeemen will meet behind closed doors to haggle out a decision. Then they'll vote in public.

Check out this previous post to see which committeemen will have the most sway over the final decision.