Illinois House Of Representatives
a bald African-American man in a blue suit with a purple necktie stands at a lectern and speaks with reporters in the Illinois Capitol Building
John O'Connor/AP

Illinois House Democrats grow their supermajority and look for a new speaker

Illinois House Democrats expanded their supermajority in last week's election — and now they're looking for a new leader. Speaker of the House Emanuel “Chris” Chris Welch says he won't seek another term as speaker after 26 House Democrats called for change, following months of criticism over his handling of sexual harassment allegations against former Rep. Harry Benton and complaints about how he runs the caucus.

Capitol News Illinois Statehouse reporter Ben Szalinski joins us to explain how we got here, who might be in line to replace Welch, and what lawmakers hope to get done during their brief fall veto session, including regulating data centers and a possible deal to keep the Chicago Bears in Illinois.

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