Government of Illinois
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. (February 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
 |
Please help improve this article by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (April 2008) |
| Illinois Government | |
| Governor of Illinois | Rod Blagojevich (D) |
| Lieutenant Governor of Illinois: | Pat Quinn (D) |
| Attorney General of Illinois: | Lisa Madigan (D) |
| Secretary of State of Illinois: | Jesse White (D) |
| Comptroller of Illinois: | Daniel Hynes (D) |
| Treasurer of Illinois: | Alexi Giannoulias (D) |
| Senior United States Senator: | Richard J. Durbin (D) |
| Junior United States Senator: | Barack Obama (D) |
The state government of Illinois is modeled after the federal government with adaptations originating from traditions cultivated during the state's frontier era.[1] The capital of Illinois is Springfield. Under the Constitution of 1970, there are three branches of government: executive, legislative and judicial. The executive branch is split into several statewide elected offices. Legislative functions are granted to the Illinois General Assembly, made of the 118-member Illinois State House of Representatives and the 59-member Illinois State Senate. The judiciary is composed of the state supreme court, Illinois Appellate Court and circuit courts.
Contents |
[edit] History
The first capitol building was in Kaskaskia, Illinois. It was a two-story brick building that rented for $4 per day. Vandalia became the capital in 1820, and was the site of three capitol buildings. In 1839, voters selected Springfield, Illinois as the new state capital city, a distinction it holds to this day.
-
For more details on this topic, see History of Illinois.
 |
Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
[edit] Departments
The government of Illinois has numerous departments, including the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the Illinois Arts Council.
|
|
Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
[edit] Politics
In the past, Illinois was a critical swing state leaning marginally towards to the Republican Party. This has changed and the state has supported Democratic presidential candidates since 1992. John Kerry easily won the state's 21 electoral votes in 2004 by a margin of 11 percentage points with 54.8% of the vote. Traditionally, Chicago, East Saint Louis, and the Illinois portion of the Quad Cities tend to vote heavily Democratic, along with the Central Illinois population centers of Peoria, Champaign-Urbana and Decatur. It should be noted, however, that in the 2004 presidential election, Kerry won Peoria County by only 94 votes.[citation needed] Rural districts tend to vote more heavily Republican, and the southern half of the state has historically tended Republican since the 1920s. The Republican Party was strongest in southern Illinois during the sixties and seventies when Barry Goldwater, Richard Nixon, and Gerald Ford won all areas of southern Illinois, with the exception of East St. Louis, three to one.
[edit] Statewide Offices
Rod R. Blagojevich (Democrat) was elected Governor in 2002, replacing George H. Ryan. Blagojevich was re-elected in 2006, defeating Republican state treasurer Judy Baar Topinka.
As of 2007, all statewide offices are held by Democrats, making Illinois the only Midwestern state with this distinction. The Democrats also have a majority of Illinois congressional delegation and majorities in both houses of Illinois's state legislature.
|
|
Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
[edit] Presidential election results
 |
It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Politics of Illinois. (Discuss) |
| Year | Republican | Democratic |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 44.48% 2,345,946 | 54.82% 2,891,550 |
| 2000 | 42.58% 2,019,421 | 54.60% 2,589,026 |
| 1996 | 36.81% 1,587,021 | 54.32% 2,341,744 |
| 1992 | 34.34% 1,734,096 | 48.58% 2,453,350 |
| 1988 | 50.69% 2,310,939 | 48.60% 2,215,940 |
| 1984 | 56.17% 2,707,103 | 43.30% 2,086,499 |
| 1980 | 49.65% 2,359,049 | 41.72% 1,981,413 |
| 1976 | 50.10% 2,364,269 | 48.13% 2,271,295 |
| 1972 | 59.03% 2,788,179 | 40.51% 1,913,472 |
| 1968 | 47.08% 2,174,774 | 44.15% 2,039,814 |
| 1964 | 40.53% 1,905,946 | 59.47% 2,796,833 |
| 1960 | 49.80% 2,368,988 | 49.98% 2,377,846 |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
|
||||||||||||||
