The White House on Thursday all but confirmed that Rahm Emanuel will resign as President Obama's chief of staff on Friday to begin his campaign for Chicago mayor.

White House chief spokesman Robert Gibbs said that Obama will make a "personnel announcement" Friday during a late-morning event in the East Room but deflected a number of questions seeking specific information.

Two people close to Emanuel said his resignation would be made official Friday and that he will return to Chicago over the weekend and begin touring neighborhoods on Monday.

"He intends to run for mayor," one of the people told The Associated Press.

Both people said they did not know when Emanuel would make an official announcement about his mayoral bid but that he would launch a website with a message to Chicago voters in the near future.

Emanuel's departure, though expected by the political world for days now, is still an unquestioned loss for Obama. The president has counted on Emanuel's intensity, discipline and congressional relationships to keep the White House focused and aggressive. The job comes with nearly unrivaled pressure and power.

Obama is expected to install senior adviser Pete Rouse, a calm White House presence with his own seasoned understanding of how Washington work, to serve as interim chief of staff. The president is likely to choose a permanent chief of staff after the Nov. 2 midterm elections.

Top contenders are Rouse, deputy national security adviser Tom Donilon and Ron Klain, the chief of staff to Vice President Biden, according to aides close to the president.

Emanuel's plans have been the source of widespread speculation both in Chicago and Washington, D.C. ever since Mayor Richard Daley announced this month he would not seek re-election. In an April television interview, Emanuel had called it "no secret" he'd like to run for mayor.

Daley, who has held the mayor's job since 1989 and carried on a family dynasty, surprised many with his announcement. The choice for Emanuel suddenly became whether he would make a dash for the political job he has openly coveted, at a cost of uprooting his family again and quitting his post of national influence sooner than he thought.

When he ultimately announces his candidacy, Emanuel instantly becomes the most recognizable name in what is already a crowded field of candidates and possible candidates. Already with well over $1 million in his war chest and his well documented ability to raise huge amounts of money for political candidates around the country, Emanuel"s campaign would be extremely well funded.

Other possible candidates include Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, who has made a name for himself in the Chicago area for suing Craigslist, among other things; former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun; at least one state senator and a city alderman.

A number of African Americans besides Moseley Braun are considering running, including Rep. Danny Davis and James Meeks, a state senator and prominent black minister. Black ministers, politicians and others have discussed throwing their support behind a single candidate.

A number of possible candidates, including Moseley Braun, Davis, Meeks and Dart, are in the process of collecting the 12,500 signatures necessary to win a spot on the February ballot.

Those running against Emanuel are sure to label him an outsider, and Emanuel will counter by stressing his ties to the city, particularly his tenure in Congress representing the district that includes Chicago's North Side.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/09/30/sources-emanuel-leaving-white-house-friday/?test=latestnews

All the rats are deserting the sinking ship, otherwise known as the Obama White House.

Never have I seen such abandonment in the first two years of a Presidency. They are dropping like flies. Hell we can't make it more then three days without hearing about one of Obama's people abandoning him since he is so toxic.

Also it's comical to note that a year and a half into President Bush's Presidency he had an approval rating in the 70's and Obama's is 41%.

I hope he's saving his cardboard boxes, cause he's gonna need them in 2012.

Rahm Emanuelle see's the writing on the wall. He knows that he's gonna get booted out anyways, so he's trying to make it look like he's got options when he really dont!!

He's gonna run for Chicago Mayor because he wants to remain in a position of political power.

But the deal is quite possibly already done...he WILL be mayor, because the corrupt Chicago politics game is swinging in his favor. They have already fixed the election results in his favor, and Im sure Oblowme is pulling strings for him too.

Well Rahm is as corrupt as they come, so he would fit right in as the maor of Chicago. All though I don't think he stand's a chance at winning since Obama and his allies are very toxic right now.

You may be surprised. Chicago is a heavy Democrap/Socialist/Liberal area....much like San Fran.

Money talks. If he gets enough to run ads directed to the right targets, he'll win. If he makes all the right allies (which is what Chicago politics is all about) the endorsements will carry him in a field of luke warm opponents. Obama has directed a ton of money to his "home". I would guess that Chicago would have a higher rating for Obama than the country in general.

So is Massachusetts, but Scott brown won. The country has had it with the Democrats and even in the most Liberal areas they are losing and or are polling very badly.

I am sure Obama's close friends(and known criminals) William Ayers, Jeremiah Wright and Tony Rezko will be right behind him.

But Scott Brown has already jumpped ship. He is now in line with Liberal policies, and has acted in accordance.

Go Rahm!!! lol

Who cares? He proved that the Democrats are dead meat next month. He showed how pissed off the nation really is at Obama and how a Republican won a seat that has been in the hands of Democrats(and in the most Liberal state in the country) for decades.

It was a sign of things to come and boy was I right. Republican's one all of the races that have been run with the exception of two.

Hell, Republican's even one a Congressional seal in Obama's supposed home state of Hawaii(another extreme Liberal state). Congressman Djou is the first Republican to hold that seat in over twenty years.

Dont get your hopes up yet. Just because they are Republicans dont mean that everything is peachy keen!!

Like I said, Brown has already done things to appease the liberals in MASS.
If he wont stand against them and their socialist ideals, how can we trust him??

Emanuel Announces Plans to Run for Chicago Mayor

Ex-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel declared Sunday that he's preparing to run for Chicago mayor, making official one of Washington's worst-kept secrets.

Emanuel made the announcement via video message on his newly launched campaign website. In the YouTube message, Emanuel said he would set out on a listening tour across Chicago as he builds his campaign.

"To keep Chicago moving forward, every community must participate. This city belongs to all of us, and every person has a role to play in building its future," he said. "So as I prepare to run for mayor, I'm going to spend the next few weeks visiting our neighborhoods -- at grocery stores, L stops, bowling alleys, and hot dog stands."

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/10/03/emanuel-announces-plans-run-chicago-mayor/

I wonder if his master's close friend's Ayers and Rezko will back him too.

Go Rahm!!!!!

Go Rahm!!!!! Right to jail, no not pass go and do not collect two hundred dollars and don't worry your boy Obama will be joining you shortly.