Illinois is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Great Lakes to its northeast,the Mississippi River to its west,and the Wabash and Ohio rivers to its south. Its largest metropolitan areas are Chicago and the Metro East region of Greater St. Louis. Other metropolitan areas include Peoria and Rockford,as well as Springfield,its capital,and Champaign-Urbana,home to the main campus of the state's flagship university. Of the fifty U.S. states,Illinois has the fifth-largest gross domestic product (GDP),the sixth-largest population,and the 25th-largest land area.
Rockford is a city in Winnebago County,Illinois,United States. It is located in the far northern part of the state on the banks of the Rock River. Rockford is the fifth-most populous city in Illinois as well as the most populous outside of the Chicago metropolitan area and the 171st-most populous in the U.S. In the 2020 census,Rockford had a population of 148,655 anchoring the Rockford metropolitan area with a population of 348,360. Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County,while a small portion of the city is located in Ogle County.
The mayor of Chicago is the chief executive of city government in Chicago,Illinois,the third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsible for the administration and management of various city departments,submits proposals and recommendations to the Chicago City Council,is active in the enforcement of the city's ordinances,submits the city's annual budget and appoints city officers,department commissioners or directors,and members of city boards and commissions.
Bobby Lee Rush is an American politician,activist and pastor who served as the U.S. representative for Illinois's 1st congressional district for three decades. A civil rights activist during the 1960s,Rush co-founded the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party.
Jesse Louis Jackson Jr. is an American politician. He served as the U.S. representative from Illinois's 2nd congressional district from 1995 until his resignation in 2012. A member of the Democratic Party,he is the son of activist and former presidential candidate Jesse Jackson and,prior to his career in elected office,worked for his father in both the elder Jackson's 1984 presidential campaign and his social justice,civil rights and political activism organization,Operation PUSH. Jackson's wife,Sandi Jackson,served on the Chicago City Council. He served as a national co-chairman of the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign. Jackson established a consistent liberal record on both social and fiscal issues,and he has co-authored books on civil rights and personal finance.
Daniel K. Davis is an American politician who is the U.S. representative from Illinois's 7th congressional district,elected in 1996. The district serves much of western Chicago,including the Loop. It also includes several of Chicago's inner western suburbs,such as Bellwood,Oak Park,and River Forest. Davis is a Democrat,a member of the Congressional Black Caucus,and a former member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
Rod Blagojevich,often referred to by his nickname "Blago",is an American politician,political commentator,and convicted felon who served as the 40th governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009. He was impeached,removed from office,convicted,and incarcerated for eight years on federal charges of public corruption. A member of the Democratic Party,Blagojevich previously worked in both the state and federal legislatures. He served as an Illinois state representative from 1993 to 1997,and the U.S. representative from Illinois's 5th district from 1997 to 2003.
The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (ISTHA) is an administrative agency of the U.S. state of Illinois charged with building,operating,and maintaining toll roads in the state. The roads,as well as the authority itself,are sometimes referred to as the Illinois Tollway. The system opened in 1958 in the Chicago area,and has subsequently expanded to include the eastern and central sections of Interstate 88 (I-88) extending into the northwestern part of the state. Beginning in 2005,the system was reconstructed to include more lanes and open road tolling,the latter of which uses I-Pass transponders to collect revenue as vehicles pass antennas at toll plazas or designated entrance or exit ramps. As of 2017,ISTHA maintains and operates 294 miles (473 km) of tollways in 12 counties in Northern Illinois.
Michael Joseph Madigan is an American politician who is the former speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives. He was the longest-serving leader of any state or federal legislative body in the history of the United States,having held the position for all but two years from 1983 to 2021. He served in the Illinois House from 1971 to 2021. He represented the 27th District from 1971 to 1983,the 30th district from 1983 to 1993,and the 22nd district from 1993 to 2021. This made him the body's longest-serving member and the last legislator elected before the Cutback Amendment.
Patrick Joseph Quinn Jr. is an American politician who served as the 41st governor of Illinois from 2009 to 2015. A Democrat,Quinn began his career as an activist by founding the Coalition for Political Honesty. He was elected lieutenant governor in 2002 and served under governor Rod Blagojevich. After Blagojevich was impeached and removed from office in 2009,Quinn assumed the governorship. He secured a full term in office in the 2010 gubernatorial election,but lost his bid for a second term in the 2014 gubernatorial election to his opponent Bruce Rauner.
Roland Wallace Burris is an American retired Democratic politician and attorney who served as Attorney General of Illinois from 1991 to 1995. In January 2009,he was appointed a United States Senator,succeeding Barack Obama,who resigned to become president of the United States. Burris held this position until November 2010,retiring from front-line politics shortly after.
James T. Meeks is a Baptist minister and past member of the Illinois Senate,who represented the 15th district from 2003 to 2013. While a Senator,he chaired the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus. He briefly campaigned for Mayor of Chicago in the 2003 and 2011 election,before dropping out of the race both times. He subsequently become a leading figure in the campaign to prevent same-sex marriage in Illinois.
Doug Scott served one term from 2001 to 2005 as mayor of Rockford,Illinois,United States,after serving from 1995 to 2001 as a member of the Illinois General Assembly. He was elected mayor after Charles Box declined to seek another term. A Democrat,Scott was appointed to head the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency after losing his mayoral reelection bid in 2005. Scott served as chairman of the Illinois Commerce Commission from 2011 to 2015.
The 2002 Illinois gubernatorial election occurred on November 5,2002. Incumbent Republican governor George Ryan,who was plagued by scandal,did not run for a second term. Democrat Rod Blagojevich,a U.S. Congressman,ran against Republican Jim Ryan,the Illinois Attorney General. Blagojevich won 52% to 45%,becoming the first Democrat to win an election for governor since 1972.
Louanner Peters is a former deputy governor of Illinois. She was appointed by then-Governor Rod Blagojevich in December 2006,becoming the first African-American woman to hold the position.
In the United States,black conservatism is a political and social movement rooted in African-American communities that aligns largely with the American conservative movement,including the Christian right. Black conservatism emphasizes social conservatism,traditionalism,patriotism,capitalism and free markets. What characterizes a "black conservative" has changed over time,and proponents do not necessarily share the same political philosophy.
In December 2008,then-Democratic Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich and his Chief of Staff John Harris were charged with corruption by federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald. As a result,Blagojevich was impeached by the Illinois General Assembly and removed from office by the Illinois Senate in January 2009. The federal investigation continued after his removal from office,and he was indicted on corruption charges in April of that year. The jury found Blagojevich guilty of one charge of making false statements with a mistrial being declared on the other 23 counts due to a hung jury after 14 days of jury deliberation. On June 27,2011,after a retrial,Blagojevich was found guilty of 17 charges,not guilty on one charge and the jury deadlocked after 10 days of deliberation on the two remaining charges. On December 7,2011,Blagojevich was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
A number of controversies related to Rod Blagojevich,formerly the Governor of Illinois,were covered in the press during and after his administration. In addition to a reputation for secrecy that was noted by the Associated Press,Blagojevich was the subject of political,legal,and personal controversies similar to those of his predecessor,Republican Governor George Ryan. To the surprise of many,Blagojevich said in 2008 that he agreed with the idea of commuting Ryan's federal prison sentence.
