Pat Quinn
From Ballotpedia
| Pat Quinn | |
| December 16, 1948 | |
 | |
| Governor of Illinois | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 29, 2009 | |
| - | |
| In office - | |
| Preceded by | Rod Blagojevich |
| Succeeded by | -
|
| Political party | Democrat |
| Profession | Attorney |
| Website | Governor Bob Riley Official site |
Contents |
Before becoming lieutenant governor, Quinn was a tax attorney. He earned an undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and a law degree from Northwestern University. He gained some early fame in the late 1970s by leading an ultimately unsuccessful drive to amend, via a petition drive, the 1970 Illinois Constitution with the "Illinois Initiative". This amendment would have provided people from Illinois with the same power to enact statutes through the process of referendum that is used in other states, notably California. Though Quinn's petition drive was successful, his efforts were blocked by the Illinois Supreme Court that ruled that the Illinois Initiative was an "unconstitutional constitutional amendment", and it was never allowed to be placed before the voters.
After serving one term as State Treasurer, Quinn ran for the office of Illinois Secretary of State in 1994, losing in the general election to the incumbent (and future Governor) George H. Ryan.
Quinn sought the office of Lieutenant Governor in 2002, and after winning the Democratic primary in March of that year, he ran together with Democratic Gubernatorial Nominee Rod Blagojevich. In Illinois, candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor run separately in the primary election, and are then joined together as a ticket in the General Election. Blagojevich and Quinn defeated Attorney General Jim Ryan and State Senator Carl Hawkinson in the general election. In the Illinois primary election in March 2006, he ran unopposed as a Democrat. In November 2006, he and Governor Rod Blagojevich won re-election to their respective offices.
Gubernatorial election, 2010
- See also: Illinois gubernatorial election, 2010
Quinn's competition in the February 2, 2010 Democratic Party primary is Illinois State Comptroller Dan Hynes.[1]
Ballot Question 1 in 1980
Quinn led the charge in 1980 for the one initiated constitutional amendment that has ever qualified for the Illiois ballot: Illinois Ballot Question 1 (1980). This amendment reduced the number of members of the Illinois House of Representatives from 177 to 188. As the petition drive to put the measure on the ballot gained momentum, it also inspired the members of the state legislature to act to eliminate a practice whereby they paid themselves drew two years' advance pay at the start of each two-year legislative session.[2]
Quinn expressed his appreciation for the initiative process in his state as the campaign proceeded, saying, "Lawmaking by initiative is both practical and workable in Illinois. Other large industrial states like Michigan Ohio, Massachusetts and California have found the initiative process to be an excellent way of directly involving average citizens in state government decisionmaking. Average voters should not be looked upon as little children who need to be protected against themselves. They have common sense and good judgment for making responsible decisions on tough policy questions that affect their lives and pocket-books."[2]
Background
Quinn, born in 1948, was the oldest of the three sons of P.J. and Eileen Quinn. He attended Catholic grade school, and then Fenwick High School in Oak Park. For college, Quinn attended Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, graduating Phi Beta Kappa in 1971 with a bachelor's degree in international economics. He went on to obtain his law degree from Northwestern University's School of Law in 1980.[3]
Quinn owns a home in Chicago's Galewood neighborhood. He is the father of two grown sons, Patrick and David.[3]
Contact information
Springfield
Office of the Governor
207 State House
Springfield, IL 62706
Phone: 217-782-0244
TTY: 888-261-3336
Chicago
Office of the Governor
James R. Thompson Center
100 W. Randolph, 16-100
Chicago, IL 60601
Phone: 312-814-2121
See also
External links
- Campaign website
- Project Vote Smart - Pat Quinn (IL) profile
- Office of Governor of Illinois website
- Follow the Money - Pat Quinn 2006 campaign contributions
References
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, "Major union snubs Quinn, Hynes in Democratic governor's race", December 12, 2009
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 United Press International, "Pat Quinn: A man politicians love to hate", February 8, 1980
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Pat Quinn biography
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Parts of this article are from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
