Madigan Loses His Grip on Power In Illinois

“Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan — the longest-serving state legislative leader in American history — is losing his grip on power as a federal investigation pounds his allies and lackluster election results undermine his influence,” Politico reports.

“Democrats began to publicly turn on Madigan over the summer, after the inquiry into influence peddling by a local electric utility company came to light. But the revolt against Madigan accelerated this week, and by Thursday enough legislators had fled Madigan to deny him his title in January, potentially stripping him of the post he’s largely held since 1983.”

“The speaker’s downfall would mark a major turning point in Illinois politics and carry with it major implications for the future of the Democratic Party in the state.”