ILLINOIS SENATE GOP LEADER RADOGNO STEPPING DOWN
Senate GOP Leader Christine Radogno stepping down Saturday
SPRINGFIELD — Seven months after jump- starting a bipartisan Senate plan to try to save the state, Illinois Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno — praised for understanding the art of compromise — announced on Thursday that she’s resigning.
The first female caucus leader in Illinois General Assembly history, Radogno, 64, will resign as leader and as a senator on Saturday, the first day of a new fiscal year, and the looming deadline for a budget deal to be reached.
“I have done everything I can do to resolve the state’s budget crisis. I will continue to do so for the coming days. But if the solution will not come on my watch, I hope and pray that the governor, other legislative leaders, Democrats and Republicans in the Senate and House, can find a path to solve the state’s problems,” Radogno said in a statement.
Radogno’s resignation was not a surprise. Many saw her push, along with Illinois Senate President John Cullerton, for the “grand bargain” package as a proactive way to put frustration into action in the waning days of her political career.
State Sen. Bill Brady of Bloomington and Sen. Karen McConnaughay of St. Charles are believed to be the front- runners for Radogno’s leadership post.
Her efforts were met with pain and disappointment when she had to march into Cullerton’s office in March to tell him he’d have no Republican votes besides her own. Cullerton accused Gov. Bruce Rauner of killing the plan. The disruption meant that Radogno, who worked tirelessly to try to get her members on board for some unpopular bills, was ultimately left alone by her caucus.
But Radogno, of Lemont, insisted Thursday the collapse of the plan wasn’t her reason for leaving: “I’m ready to focus on my personal life,” she said.
While the “grand bargain” fell apart at times, all measures within the package passed the Illinois Senate. In her statement, Radogno thanked Cullerton for his “friendship and working relationship.”
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Cullerton, in turn, said he would miss her “camaraderie and common sense.” He credited her for this week’s legislative leaders meeting.
“But I also hope that she has a few tricks left up her sleeve before July 1 to help us finally get out of this mess,” Cullerton said.
Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan said she “leaves with a reputation for hard work, honesty, integrity.”
“The genius of the legislative process lies in the ability to compromise, and Chris Radogno understands that,” Madigan said.
In discussing her departure, she also became tearyeyed while discussing the sudden death of Lisa Radogno, her daughter, in 2014. Lisa Radogno, 31, was an executive assistant for Sen. Mark Kirk, R- Ill. She died from a blood clot in her lung about a month after she was injured in a hitand- run accident.
“It doubled down my interest in it [ politics], but it did give me the perspective that nothing is forever,” Radogno said. “And I don’t want to be squandering my life with my husband and my grandkids and my other daughters. We only all have a certain amount of time, and that experience told me, that’s for sure.”