Will Your Illinois State Rep Vote For Speaker Mike Madigan?

SPRINGFIELD, IL — Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan will preside over a lame-duck session of the Illinois General Assembly beginning Friday and, potentially, running through noon Wednesday, when 118 state representatives and 59 state senators elected in November are due to be sworn in for new terms.

The first item of business for state reps in the 102nd General Assembly: voting on a House speaker. It will take 60 votes to win the speakership. There are 73 House Democrats, and as of Wednesday, 19 of them have announced they will not vote for Madigan for a 19th term as speaker, presenting the longtime Democratic Party boss with the biggest leadership challenge of his career.

Madigan, 78, is the longest-serving leader of any legislative body in U.S. history. He has represented Chicago's Southwest Side in the Illinois House since 1971 and has been House speaker since 1983 — other than a single two-year session in the mid-1990s when Republicans briefly held a majority. He also serves as head of the Democratic Party of Illinois.

Through a network of patronage and control of campaign cash, Madigan — dubbed the "Velvet Hammer" — has managed to maintain legislative leadership and control of the party, despite polls showing more than two out of three Illinois voters disapprove of him.

Find where your state representative stands in the map below (click for full map)

Three of the 19 state reps who have pledged not to vote for Madigan to remain House speaker have declared their candidacy for speakership.

Rep. Stephanie Kifowit (D-Oswego) announced a leadership challenge in October. Rep. Kathleen Willis, the first member of Madigan's House leadership team to call for his ouster as speaker, has also launched a challenge, and Rep. Ann Williams (D-Chicago) declared her entry to the race for speaker Wednesday.

The names of several other senior state reps have been floated as potential successors to Madigan. Last month, Madigan earned the endorsement of House's Black Caucus and Latinx Caucus. The results of Wednesday's meeting of the Women's Caucus were not immediately available.

Related:
Madigan's Future As Speaker In Question Heading Into New General Assembly
Madigan Chief Of Staff Ruled By Fear For Over 25 Years: Report
Durbin, Duckworth, Pritzker: Madigan Needs To Go As Party Leader
Former ComEd Execs, Consultants Charged In Bribery Scheme

If no candidate is able to secure the necessary votes in a first ballot, the House adjourns until the next day, according to House rules. That means the selection of the next speaker could take a while. It took 93 votes and about two weeks to pick a speaker in 1975's race between Democrats Clyde Choate and Bill Redmond.

In 2018, Madigan's political machine began to face the impact of the #MeToo movement. In response to allegations of harassment, he forced out his chief of staff, cut ties with two longtime aides and launched an audit of sexual harassment complaints in his office.

Last year, federal prosecutors dubbed Madigan "Public Official A" in federal court filings alleging a bribery scheme involving Commonwealth Edison, which agreed to pay $200 million in restitution as part of a deferred prosecution agreement. Madigan's longtime confidant Michael McClain and three ComEd officials were indicted.

Last month, on a party-line vote, a House committee rejected a charge of "conduct unbecoming to a legislator or which constitutes a breach of public trust." Democratic members of the committee blocked an effort to call Madigan, who has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime, to testify.

Following November's election, U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, then Gov. J.B. Pritzker, called for Madigan to step down as state party leader — though only Duckworth called for new leadership in the House as well.

Updates:
Madigan Suspends Campaign For House Speaker
Rep. Chris Welch Succeeds Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan
Former House Speaker Resigns His State Rep Seat
Michael Madigan Resigns As Illinois Democratic Party Chairman
Madigan's Second Appointed Successor In A Week Sworn In After First Ousted