In the early 1900s, the Unione took part in efforts to fight the Black Hand in Chicago. It failed in this endeavor. Later, the presidency of the Unione became a target for political power brokers. Antonio D'Andrea was the Chicago Mafia boss at that time. He was an ex-priest who was arrested for counterfeiting in 1902. With the assistance of his family and supporters, he was released from prison after a short time. He worked as a professional translator and later as a court translator. In 1916, he ran for political office, but his criminal past was exposed, which he had kept hidden. To gain additional strength from the local Italian power base, he ran and was elected president of the Chicago chapter of the Unione in or around 1919. In 1921, he ran against John Powers, who ended up with more Italian support than D'Andrea. There were numerous bombings and killings from followers of both men, and D'Andrea dropped out of the race. Nevertheless, he was shot and mortally wounded in May, 1921.