Illinois governor Blagojevich removed from office

Friday, January 30, 2009

The Illinois Senate has voted unanimously to remove disgraced Governor Rod Blagojevich from office. He has been replaced by Lt Governor Pat Quinn. The 59-0 vote also bars him from holding public office in Illinois ever again.

Blagojevich has been accused of attempting to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama when he won the presidency. He has repeatedly denied the charge. Investigators have released secretly recorded tapes of conversations which allegedly feature him talking of how much he could make from the deal.

Officials in the state capital, Springfield, have immediately removed the ex-governor's name and face from public buildings, including the name plate on his office door. Official portraits have been changed to that of Quinn.

Democratic senator Dick Durbin released a statement saying, "It is now time to close this chapter in Illinois history. The state of Illinois is in need of a fresh start".

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Related news

"Burris sworn in as US Senator for Illinois" — Wikinews, January 16, 2009
"Illinois House impeaches Blagojevich" — Wikinews, January 10, 2009
"Illinois Governor Blagojevich appoints Roland Burris for vacated U.S. Senate seat" — Wikinews, January 3, 2009
"Illinois court rejects attempt to have governor removed from office" — Wikinews, December 18, 2008
"Governor of Illinois arrested on suspicion of corruption" — Wikinews, December 9, 2008

Sources

CBS and AP. "The End Of The Blagojevich Affair" — CBS News, January 30, 2009
CNN. "Workers waste no time erasing Blagojevich pictures, name from Capitol" — New York Daily News, January 30, 2009
"Blagojevich convicted, removed from office" — Atlanta Business Chronicle, January 30, 2009

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