The Illinois House has elected a new speaker and it’s not Mike Madigan. Greg Hinz reports at Crain’s Chicago:
Rep. Emanuel “Chris†Welch, D-Hillside, will become Speaker of the Illinois House, ending Michael Madigan’s decades-long hold on the position.
The House voted 70-44 in favor of Welch, with 44 votes going to House GOP Leader Jim Durkin. Another Democratic candidate, downstate Rep. Jay Hoffman, dropped out of the race.
Welch becomes Illinois’ first Black speaker, with Mayor Lori Lightfoot calling his election “a momentous day in Illinois” in a tweet.
The good news is that he’s not Mike Madigan. The bad news is that he’s a Madigan lieutenant who may well be tarred by the same can of brushes heading for Madigan himself:
Rep. Emanuel “Chris†Welch, D-Hillside, will become Speaker of the Illinois House, ending Michael Madigan’s decades-long hold on the position.
The House voted 70-44 in favor of Welch, with 44 votes going to House GOP Leader Jim Durkin. Another Democratic candidate, downstate Rep. Jay Hoffman, dropped out of the race.
Welch becomes Illinois’ first Black speaker, with Mayor Lori Lightfoot calling his election “a momentous day in Illinois” in a tweet.
He received substantial support from the House’s black and Hispanic caucuses, consistent with the changing times for the Democratic Party.
