Rod R. Blagojevich,often referred to by his nickname "Blago",is an American politician 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.
James D. Oberweis is an American businessman,investment manager,and politician from the state of Illinois. The owner of Oberweis Dairy in North Aurora near Chicago,he served as a member of the Illinois Senate,representing the 25th district from 2013 to 2021.
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.
The Democratic Party of Illinois is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the oldest extant state party in Illinois and one of just two recognized parties in the state,along with the Republican Party. It is currently the dominant party in the state,controlling the majority of Illinois' U.S. House seats,both U.S. Senate seats,both houses of the state legislature,and the governorship.
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,and as of 2024 he is the most recent male to serve as Illinois's Lieutenant Governor.
James Brian Durkin is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003 and again from 2006 to 2023. He served as the Minority Leader of the Illinois House of Representatives from 2013 to 2023.
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.
Alexander Giannoulias is an American financier and politician who is the Secretary of State of Illinois. He previously served as the 72nd Illinois Treasurer from 2007 to 2011.
Michael W. Frerichs is an American politician serving his third term as the State Treasurer of Illinois,after taking office on January 12,2015. Before being elected treasurer,he was a Democratic member of the Illinois Senate,representing the 52nd District from 2007 until 2015. The district,located in Champaign and Vermilion counties,includes all or parts of Champaign,Danville,Georgetown,Gifford,Rantoul,Thomasboro,and Urbana.
Christine Radogno is an American politician and former Republican member of the Illinois Senate,representing the 41st Legislative District in Cook,DuPage,and Will Counties from 1997 to 2017. Radogno served as the Minority Leader,the first female leader of a political party in the Illinois Legislature. She resigned from the Illinois State Senate on July 1,2017 amid the Illinois budget crisis.
After the resignation of Republican Party United States Congressman Dennis Hastert from his Illinois's 14th congressional district seat in the United States House of Representatives on November 26,2007,a special election was held to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the 110th United States Congress.
The 2010 United States Senate elections in Illinois took place on November 2,2010. There were two ballot items for the same seat:a general election,to fill the Class 3 seat beginning with the 112th United States Congress beginning on January 3,2011,and a special election,to fill that seat for the final weeks of the 111th Congress. Roland Burris,who was appointed to fill the vacancy created by fellow Democrat Barack Obama's election to the presidency,did not run in either election.
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 in August 2010 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.
David H. Hoffman is a former federal prosecutor and was Chicago's inspector general. Hoffman ran for the Illinois seat of the U.S. Senate in 2010 but lost to Alexi Giannoulias in the Democratic primary.
Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday,November 2,2010. Primary elections were held on February 2,2010.
The 2014 Illinois gubernatorial election was held on November 4,2014,to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Illinois,concurrently with the election to Illinois's Class II U.S. Senate seat,as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Illinois on November 4,2014. All of Illinois' executive officers were up for election as well as a United States Senate seat,and all of Illinois' eighteen seats in the United States House of Representatives. Primary elections were held on March 18,2014.
The 2018 Illinois Attorney General election took place on November 6,2018,to elect the Attorney General of Illinois. Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Lisa Madigan,who had served since 2003,did not seek re-election to a fifth term. Democrat Kwame Raoul won the election with 55 percent of the vote,while Republican Erika Harold took 43 percent of the vote.
The 2022 Illinois Secretary of State election was held on November 8,2022,to elect the next Illinois Secretary of State. Incumbent Democrat Jesse White did not seek re-election to a seventh term. Alexi Giannoulias,a former state treasurer,won the open seat.
