Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch’s informal rule requiring support from 75% of his Democratic members before allowing floor votes needs to go.

In many ways, Welch’s political career has been defined by his handling of critical moments. That was especially true in January 2021, when then-Speaker Michael J. Madigan, struggling under the weight of a burgeoning corruption scandal,

Illinois House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch has a warning for Mayor Brandon Johnson: getting help from Springfield this year could be an uphill battle.

House Republicans called the lame duck session a “waste of taxpayer dollars,” given Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher declared it a snow emergency day. In a statement to Playbook, Republican Leader Tony McCombie accused Welch of leading a “mismanaged” lame-duck session. “The buck stops with the leader — the speaker.”

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s continued insistence on looking to Springfield as a magical pot of gold for additional city revenue is being greeted with a stern warning from one powerful voice — Democratic House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch.

Thank God we live in Illinois because, we’re already Trump-proof,” Welch told the Sun-Times. “We did a lot of the hard work the first time. … We took him at his word the first time when he said he would overturn Roe v.

To enact his progressive agenda, Mayor Brandon Johnson is looking to Springfield for an assist, but powerful Speaker of the Illinois House Emanuel "Chris" Welch warns that money is tight.

A new Illinois General Assembly was sworn in and legislators now face several tough issues including how to plug a projected $3.2 billion budget hole.

State lawmakers who stood in the way of recent legislation that would've regulated intoxicating hemp products have received significant campaign cash from the industry — while some backers of the proposal got money from the rival marijuana industry.

The lame duck session may have signaled tough times ahead as Illinois lawmakers seek to navigate a multitude of issues this spring, including a projected $3.2 billion budget shortfall.

When state Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch was sworn in for another term as speaker of the House this month, he called on his colleagues to “rise

MIGRANT MOVES | The Biden administration says it will extend temporary deportation relief to nearly 1 million people from El Salvador, Sudan, Ukraine and Venezuela, via POLITICO’s Myah Ward. The move comes days before Donald Trump takes office with a promise to restrict the program.