Rep. Chris Welch Succeeds Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan

SPRINGFIELD, IL — State Rep. Chris Welch (D-Hillside) replaced Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) as speaker of the Illinois House Wednesday, becoming the first Black person elected to the post in the chamber's history.

Madigan had held the speaker's gavel since 1983, apart from a two-year interregnum in the mid-1990s after Republicans won a majority. He was the longest-serving legislative leader in U.S. history, despite polls indicating he is deeply unpopular among voters who do not rely on his patronage or campaign fundraising apparatus.

Welch is a close supporter of Madigan and his name had been floated as a possible successor. He was first elected to the Illinois House in 2013 after serving on the Proviso Township High School District 209 Board of Education. Last year, he served as the chairman of a legislative investigative committee that cleared Madigan of wrongdoing in connection with the Commonwealth Edison bribery scandal.

After a closed-door vote Sunday revealed Madigan was nine votes short of the 60 needed to secure the speakership — and facing a group of 19 of the 73 House Democrats who vowed to never vote for him again — he announced the suspension of his campaign Monday.

Welch formally entered the race Monday and secured the endorsement of the Legislative Black Caucus and the Latinx Caucus. He had 50 votes in an initial poll of House Democrats. Rep. Ann Williams (D-Chicago) — the next highest vote-getter other than Madigan — withdrew, but Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-Swansea) threw his hat in the ring.

However, by Wednesday morning, Hoffman too had withdrawn, and Welch secured 69 votes among House Democrats, with three voting present and one not voting, according to multiple reports.

Madigan released a statement Wednesday morning thanking his constituents, House Democrats and his staff for their work during his half-century statehouse tenure. He said it had been the honor of his lifetime to help bring people together to serve the state.

“It is time for new leadership in the House. I wish all the best for Speaker-elect Welch as he begins a historic speakership. It is my sincere hope today that the caucus I leave to him and to all who will serve alongside him is stronger than when I began," Madigan said.

"And as I look at the large and diverse Democratic majority we have built—full of young leaders ready to continue moving our state forward, strong women and people of color, and members representing all parts of our state—I am confident Illinois remains in good hands,” he added.

Lawmakers elected in November were sworn in shortly after noon Sunday. Under House rules, they must first elect a new speaker for their coming two-year term.

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Rep. Maurice West (D-Rockford) nominated Welch as speaker as the first order of business in the 102nd General Assembly. He was the only member of the Black Caucus among the 19 House Democrats who joined together to oust Madigan after several ComEd officials and one of the speaker's closest confidants were indicted on bribery conspiracy charges.

"Chris Welch is the leader for such a time as this," West said. "Yes, we are walking in uncharted territories with COVID-19 still running rampant through our communities, a major budget crisis, remap, all while immediately following in the huge footsteps and monumental legacy of Speaker Madigan. But I fully believe that Welch did not choose this moment, this moment chose Welch, because he has the wherewithal to convene the great minds within this caucus so we can tackle these issues together."

Welch was elected 70-44, with one member voting present, one not voting and one not present. The 102nd General Assembly includes 73 Democrats after Republicans picked up a seat in November's election.

In an address to the House after the vote, Welch said Illinois would never be able to adequately thank Madigan for the job he has done.

"Before we get to work, I honestly believe that we have to thank and acknowledge that our state would not be where it is today without Speaker Madigan," Welch said.

"We have to acknowledge that fact. While our state has many problems, our schools are better, more children have access to health care and our working class families can more easily live the American dream thanks to the strong leadership of Speaker Madigan," he said.

Democrats applauded, many rising to their feet. Republican members remained seated. A few clapped politely.

"When I came to Springfield last Friday, it was not my ambition to be standing here, I can tell you that," Welch said. "My ambition was to help my constituents. That was the job that I accepted and I'm going to continue to do each and every day that I come here."

The newly seated speaker questioned whether Illinois politics has to be about negativity and destruction, saying he would look across the aisle to find areas of common ground.

"There are many important issues that will face us in the coming months, and it's important that we seize this opportunity. Moments are just that — a moment. Once they pass we can never get that moment back. And as the Illinois General Assembly, it's important that we meet the challenges of this moment," he said.

"We meet the challenge of the moment by being united, not divided. We're not Democrats and Republicans when we come to work. We're going to be united, not divided. We remember our shared values, not the few differences that we have."

Illinois Republican Leader Jim Durkin told Welch he was extending an "olive branch of cooperation" to the new speaker. But he had harsh words for Madigan's decades-long legacy in charge.

"His legacy leaves broken promises to Illinois taxpayers. Listen, a legacy driven by absolute power and control, so much that his business model forced the largest public utility in the state to enter into a deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago. That's an admission of fact. A nine-year scheme to bribe," Durkin said.

"What's it about? No-show jobs, board appointments, contracts run through a third-party to benefit his allies, all to influence and reward his effort to assist ComEd with legislation," he continued. "The legacy is also one which failed its citizens with unbalanced budgets, broken pension systems, tax increase after tax increase with nothing to show for it. The saying goes that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely, as I said, reflect on the past."

Gov. J.B. Pritzker congratulated Welch for his election as the state's first Black speaker of the Illinois House.

“Speaker Welch has a record of championing legislation that has improved the lives of hard working Illinoisans, and I have enjoyed working with him to move our state forward. As Governor, I believe strongly that it is incumbent upon me to work with the General Assembly’s leaders who are chosen by their caucuses, and I look forward to continuing to work with Speaker Welch on our shared agenda," Pritzker said in a statement after the vote.

“I also want to recognize Speaker Madigan for his decades of service to the state of Illinois," he added. "Years from now, when historians focus on the legacy of the General Assemblies he has led, they will see beyond this chapter to the many achievements in the fight to lift up working families and those most in need, and they will especially acknowledge the necessary firewall that was built in the fight against Governor Rauner’s destructive agenda."

The chairman of the Illinois Republican Party, Tim Schneider, described the Democrats' pick as a "travesty" in a statement released in response to reports of Welch's selection. The GOP chair said Welch passed the most important test of his loyalty to the speaker by performing as his "human shield" during a legislative investigation into a bribery scheme.

"House Democrats have chosen to go from Mike Madigan, the most corrupt politician in America, to Rep. Chris Welch, a top Madigan lieutenant who has been credibly accused by multiple women in court documents of harassment, assault, and retaliation," Schneider said, referring to a 2002 police report and two lawsuits filed against Welch a decade ago while he was District 209 board president. All were later dismissed.

Durkin said the new speaker would have a partner in House Republicans if he wished to move on from the past.

"We must work toward ending the culture of corruption that has allowed our state to be run into the ground for the benefit of a politically connected few," he said. "We must enact responsible fiscal leadership, the days of overspending, overpromising and underdelivering have to be left behind."

This article originally appeared on the Springfield Patch