The swagger that Illinois’ Democrats have displayed since taking full control of Springfield three years ago had already been tamped down by the political realities of confronting crime and COVID
Michael Madigan's indictment presents another election-year problem for Democrats already facing Republican attacks over crime and the COVID-19 response.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) The Illinois House on Wednesday elected its first Black speaker to replace the longest-serving legislative leader in modern U.S. history, picking Democratic Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch for the job and pushing aside Michael Madigan after he was implicated in an ongoing bribery investigation.
Welch, an eight-year House veteran from the Chicago suburb of Hillside, garnered 70 votes from the 118-member House just days after emerging as the front-runner alternative to Madigan, 78, who was first inaugurated as a House member a half-century ago.
Madigan has wielded the gavel for 36 of the past 38 years and had sought another term in his post despite 19 members of his caucus announcing their opposition in the past six months. But after coming up short in a Sunday caucus vote, Madigan suspended his campaign, allowing lawmakers to consider others rather than force a potentially drawn-out floor fight that would paralyze all other business.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - The Illinois House on Wednesday elected its first Black speaker to replace the longest-serving legislative leader in modern U.S. history