Illinois Democrats pick Welch for House speaker; Madigan out

Illinois House Democrats have thrown their support behind a Black legislator to take over as speaker, backing Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch to lead the chamber as Michael Madigan stepped aside from the job he'd held for nearly 40 years

Illinois House Speaker Election

Illinois House Democrats threw their support Wednesday behind a Black legislator to take over as speaker, backing Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch to lead the chamber as Michael Madigan stepped aside from a job he'd held for nearly 40 years.

Madigan issued a statement conceding that “it is time for new leadership in the House” after a morning Democratic caucus cast a majority of its votes for Welch, of the Chicago suburb of Hillside.

Welch emerged as the front-runner Monday after Madigan, who has been a lock in that caucus for 18 terms, wielded the gavel for 36 of the past 38 years. Madigan, the longest-serving legislative leader in modern U.S. history, failed in a Sunday test vote to get the 60 votes required to reclaim the gavel, largely because of a federal bribery investigation that’s implicated him.