Kanye West donates to Chicago mayoral candidate

CHICAGO: Kanye West made a five-figure donation to a littleknown candidate running to become the mayor of his hometown Chicago, days after she was endorsed by fellow hip hop star Chance the Rapper.

West gave US$73,540 (RM305,682) to the campaign of Amara Enyia, who wants to be the first black woman to lead America’s third largest city.

The amount is the exact figure state election officials fined Enyia’s campaign for a technical violation connected to an unsuccessful 2015 mayoral run.

“The Amara Enyia campaign thanks Chicago native Kanye West for his generous action,” the campaign said in a short statement.

“The US$73,540 debt to the Illinois State Board of Elections has been paid in full.”

Chance, who is also a Chicago native and an outspoken activist in the city, last week endorsed Enyia – immediately raising her profile among a crowded field of contenders that includes a former Obama White House chief of staff.

Current mayor Rahm Emanuel last month announced he would not run for a third term in the Feb 26 election.

“I wanted to be behind the person that I believe can make a change,” Chance told a news conference on Tuesday last week.

Enyia is the head of a business group in one of the city’s economically-struggling southern neighbourhoods, where gun violence, the drug trade and poverty have contributed to a skyrocketing murder rate.