Michael Madigan

Michael J. Madigan (born April 19, 1942) is an American politician. He was the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives and Chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois.^[1] A Democrat, he has held the position of Speaker of the House for all but two years since 1983—those two years being a brief interregnum of Republican majority and is the longest serving Speaker.^[2] He has been a member of the Illinois House 1971-2021, and represented the 22nd district. He was the longest serving Speaker in Illinois and was known for having a rough rivalry with former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich.

Michael Madigan
Madigan in 2013
Chair of the Democratic Party of Illinois
In office April 3, 1998 – February 22, 2021
Preceded by	Gary LaPaille
Succeeded by	Karen Yarbrough (interim)
67th and 69th Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives
In office January 8, 1997 – January 13, 2021
Governor	Jim Edgar George Ryan Rod Blagojevich Pat Quinn Bruce Rauner J. B. Pritzker
Preceded by	Lee Daniels
Succeeded by	Emanuel Chris Welch
In office January 12, 1983 – January 11, 1995
Governor	James R. Thompson Jim Edgar
Preceded by	Arthur Telcser
Succeeded by	Lee Daniels
Member of the Illinois House of Representatives from the 22nd district
In office January 13, 1971 – February 18, 2021
Preceded by	Frank Savickas
Succeeded by	Edward Guerra Kodatt
Constituency	27th district (1971–83) 30th district (1983–93) 22nd district (1993–2021)
Personal details
Born	Michael Joseph Madigan (1942-04-19) April 19, 1942 (age 83) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Shirley Murray
Children	4, including Lisa (adopted)
Education	University of Notre Dame (B.A.) Loyola University (J.D.)

On January 11, 2021, Madigan announced he would be ending his bid to be elected to a nineteenth term as Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives.^[3]

Early life

Madigan was born on April 19, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois. He studied at University of Notre Dame and graduated from the Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

Speaker of the House of Illinois

He has been Speaker of the Illinois House since 1982, with the exception of 1995–1996 when Republicans took control of the chamber. Madigan engineered a Democratic comeback and regained his majority at the elections of November 1996, which he continues to defend today. He has feuded with other Democratic leaders since 2002 – when Democrats took control of all branches of the state government – most notably Governor Rod Blagojevich and Senate President Emil Jones.

One of Madigan's chief Democratic deputies in the House was Gary Hannig, who often handles budget issues.^[4]

He was the longest-serving leader of any state or federal legislative body in the history of the United States, having held the position for all but two years since 1983.^[5]

In January 2021, Madigan refused to run for State House Speaker again following bribery allegations. Madigan operated a property tax consulting enterprise that prosecutors alleged to facilitate a bribery enterprise

On February 18, 2021 Madigan resigned from the state legislature.^[6][7]

Criminal charges

On March 2, 2022, Madigan was indicted on federal racketeering charges.^[8] He was convicted at trial on October 8, 2024, and has appeals of the conviction pending.^[9][10]

On February 12, 2025, Madigan was convicted on ten counts of bribery, wire fraud, and Travel Act violations.^[11][12] However, none of these convictions were related to his alleged racketeering partnership with Michael McClain.^[12] He was sentenced to 7½ years in prison and a $2.5 million fine.

Personal life

Madigan is married to Shirley Madigan. They had one daughter. His daughter is former Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan. He lives and represents West Lawn, Chicago.