Mayor Daley has a little more than two weeks left in office. While he does have some post-mayoral irons in the fire, His Elective Majesty is wasting no time in collecting his pension. Daley decided to start collecting his pension under the Illinois Retirement Systems Reciprocal Act, effective May 17. That's the day after he leaves office, y'all. more ›

Cook County Board President-elect Toni Preckwinkle announced her transition team today, and it's a bipartisan commission of heavy hitters, . more ›

Former Governor Jim Edgar bucked the Republican party line Thursday by showing support for Governor Quinn’s proposed tax hikes. At a speech on leadership at Elmhurst College, Edgar praised Quinn for calling for a tax increase, saying ""There is no easy way out of the mess we are in. I give Governor Quinn credit for having the courage to call for a tax increase in an election year. I don’t think he can get by, if you are going to solve this, without a tax increase.” Quinn’s opponent, Bill Brady, has pledged to solve the state’s $13 billion and growing budget deficit by reducing spending alone. more ›

• A barricade situation on the city's West Side was peacefully resolved this afternoon.
• An off-duty Chicago Police officer was killed in an early morning car crash on the Kennedy Expressway.
• Kirk Dillard got an endorsement in his race for governor from former governor Jim Edgar.

Tony Rezko's rise to power in state politics didn't happen overnight. When got started as a strong advocate of grassroots Arab-American activism in Chicago and was often the largest contributor to Arab-American campaigns. But several years ago, Rezko’s name started showing up on campaign disclosure forms for prominent politicians in Chicago, Cook County and the state. more ›

It seems like everybody in town knows Tony Rezko's name. And why not? Besides being under federal indictment, he's a big player in Illinois politics. He's also gotten some national attention, with Former Gov. Jim Edgar musing that Rezko isn't really Obama's problem, and a photo of him with former President Bill Clinton surfacing on the Today show. more ›

Former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar is expected to endorse Rudy Giuliani's presidential candidacy today, according to the Chicago Tribune. The endorsement comes as Giuliani makes several fundraising stops in Illinois. Besides Edgar, he has the backing of former governor Jim Thompson and Illinois Republican House Leader Tom Cross. With the Illinois GOP divided ideologically and Republicans desperately seeking Ronald Reagan, the Giuliani campaign is hoping that an endorsement by Edgar will help shore up his... more ›

In case you missed it last night, the big awards show was incredible. No, not that awards show. We’re talking about the awards Chicagoist gave out to politicians for outstanding achievement in campaign commercials—The Campaignys. Because none of the nominees were present, the members of the Academy of Campaign Commercial Arts and Sciences accepted their awards (cans of Sparks, a drink near and dear to our blood alcohol levels) and drank them on their behalf.... more ›

Last night was the big Republican debate between gubernatorial candidates Judy Baar Topinka, Bill Brady, Ron Gidwitz, and Jim Oberweis. We were entertained, mostly by the horrible lighting that made the candidates look tired and haggard, but not enlightened. Too bad the earlier run-in between Brady and Oberweis was not televised. The debate focused on jobs, the economy, and the business climate in Illinois. The candidates agreed on most of the topics—the need to... more ›

Clear your schedule on Wednesday evening. Four Republican candidates for governor, Bill Brady, Ron Gidwitz, Jim Oberweis, and Judy Baar Topinka, will be debating live on CBS 2 at 6 PM. We appreciate CBS 2 televising the debate tomorrow night, but we are incredibly disappointed that they are not letting the public send in any debate questions. As if that wasn't bad enough, they didn't even offer us any rules for drinking games. Personally,... more ›

A couple of weeks ago we let you know what Governor Blagojevich was doing to reach out to his base, and now it is time to turn the tables to discuss Republican frontrunner Judy Baar Topinka. more ›

Governor Blagojevich was in Washington DC earlier this week in an attempt to turn his All Kids insurance plan into a national program. All Kids, which offers low cost health insurance to Illinois children, was signed into law by Blago last month, and is scheduled to officially begin in July of 2006, although pre-registration is currently underway on the program’s website. All Kids has garnered national attention as other states and the national government... more ›

State Republicans met here on Friday to discuss who will be their party’s best chance of reclaiming Illinois governor’s mansion next year. Not surprisingly, a Republican poll shows Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka leading her fellow GOP candidates, as well as maintaining a 39 to 35 percent lead over Governor Blagojevich. more ›

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-051129topinka-story,1,2630829.story?coll=chi-news-hed">will be touring the state today to officially open her campaign for governor. She plans to stop in Cicero (where she grew up), Peoria, and Marion before heading over to Springfield to wrap things up this evening. Lots of driving, we hope she has AAA. more ›

First she was in, then she was out, but now she is back in. Republican State Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka has decided to run for governor. more ›

Local news outlets are reporting that today is the day Jim Edgar will announce whether or not he will run for governor of Illinois against Rod Blagojevich in the 2006 race. If Edgar does run, he will be the bright spot of his party in Illinois, and will hope to ease recent Republican failings ranging from George Ryan to Alan Keyes. Recent polls find that Edgar could beat Blagojevich. Several Republican sources are reporting... more ›

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Once upon a time (let’s say 1990), in a magical land called Illinois, a Republican named Jim Edgar was elected governor. Jim was so popular, and so centrist, even Democrats respected him! He was easily elected to another term, and the Republicans were so happy. But one day (let’s say 1998), Jim decided to retire from politics, and the Republicans were very sad. After that, the Republicans were forced to endure the scandalous governorship of... more ›

Yesterday the Los Angeles Superior Court released the divorce files of Republican Senate Candidate Jack Ryan and actress Jeri Ryan, revealing allegations that Jack Ryan tried to get his then-wife to have sex with him in public at various sex clubs. But the pain for Ryan doesn't stop there. more ›