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Jan 14, 2021 09:37 PM EST
Illinois Democrats of the House of Representatives on Wednesday voted to anoint state Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch (D) as their next leader. This formally concludes decades of dominion by House Speaker Mike Madigan (D), who was sitting longer in his position more than any other state Speaker in the history of the United States.
Welch Elected as New Illinois House Speaker
Welch, who represents a suburban district east of Chicago, garnered the votes required to become Speaker after negotiating with state Rep. Jay Hoffman (D), who will hold a leadership post the following year.
The Illinois House elected its first Black Speaker to oust the longest-seated legislative leader in modern US history, picking Welch for the position and ousting Madigan following his implication in an ongoing bribery investigation.