"Blagojevich" redirects here. For other people named Blagojevich, see Blagojević.
Rod Blagojevich
Blagojevich c. 2007
40th Governor of Illinois
In office January 13, 2003 – January 29, 2009
Lieutenant
Pat Quinn
Preceded by
George Ryan
Succeeded by
Pat Quinn
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 5th district
In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2003
Preceded by
Michael Flanagan
Succeeded by
Rahm Emanuel
Member of the Illinois House of Representatives from the 33rd district
In office January 6, 1993 – January 3, 1997
Preceded by
Myron Kulas
Succeeded by
John Fritchey
Personal details
Born
(1956-12-10) December 10, 1956 (age 67) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party
Democratic
Spouse
Patricia Mell
Children
2
Education
University of Tampa
Northwestern University (BA)
Pepperdine University (JD)
Signature
Criminal information
Criminal status
Was incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution, Englewood
Sentence commuted February 18, 2020 by President Donald Trump
Conviction(s)
Wire fraud (10 counts)
Bribery (3 counts)
Extortion (4 counts)
Making false statements[1]
Criminal penalty
Served nearly 8 years of a 14 year sentence; commuted
Rod Blagojevich (/bləˈɡɔɪ.əvɪtʃ/blə-GOY-ə-vitch; born December 10, 1956), often referred to by his nickname "Blago",[2][3] is an American politician, political commentator, and convicted felon who served as the 40th governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009. He was impeached, removed from office, convicted, and incarcerated for eight years on federal charges of public corruption. A member of the Democratic Party, Blagojevich previously worked in both the state and federal legislatures. He served as an Illinois state representative from 1993 to 1997, and the U.S. representative from Illinois's 5th district from 1997 to 2003.
Born and raised in Chicago, Blagojevich graduated from Northwestern University in 1979 and the Pepperdine University School of Law in 1983. After graduating, he became a criminal prosecutor at the Cook County State's Attorney Office during the late 1980s. Turning to elective politics, he represented the 33rd state house district in the Illinois House of Representatives where he supported mostly law and order policies. Forgoing a third two-year term in the state legislature, he represented Illinois's 5th congressional district for six years, winning re-election twice. He was elected Illinois governor in 2002, the first Democrat to win the office since 1972. There was increased public education funding, infrastructure development, and criminal justice reforms during his first term.
A 2006 re-election and his second term led to the passage of a variety of healthcare, gun control, and anti-discrimination bills. Starting in December 2008, a federal investigation and trial found Blagojevich guilty of public corruption after he attempted to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama upon his election to the presidency. Blagojevich was impeached, convicted, and removed from office in 2009 by the Illinois General Assembly. He was also subsequently barred by the Illinois Senate from holding public office within the state ever again. For his role in the corruption scandal, Blagojevich was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison. After an appeal for his release, U.S. President Donald Trump formally commuted his sentence in 2020, after Blagojevich had been imprisoned for nearly eight years.[4][5] From May 2020 to September 2021, Blagojevich hosted a politics-themed radio program called The Lightning Rod on WLS-AM.
^"List of Blagojevich convictions, max sentences".
^Cite error: The named reference associated press2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference DailySouthtown was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference Commutation was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Sweet, Lynn; Seidel, Jon; Sneed, Michael (February 18, 2020). "Trump commutes prison sentence of disgraced ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich". Chicago Sun-Times. U.S. District Judge James Zagel gave Blagojevich 14 years, putting him on track for release in March 2024.
RodBlagojevich (/bləˈɡɔɪ.əvɪtʃ/ blə-GOY-ə-vitch; born December 10, 1956), often referred to by his nickname "Blago", is an American politician, political...
Blagojevich corruption scandal In December 2008, then-Democratic Governor of Illinois RodBlagojevich and his Chief of Staff John Harris were charged...
Patricia Mell "Patti" Blagojevich (born April 9, 1965), née Mell, is the former First Lady of Illinois and wife of RodBlagojevich, the former Governor...
Democrat RodBlagojevich, a U.S. Congressman, ran against Republican Jim Ryan (no relation to the incumbent), the Illinois Attorney General. Blagojevich won...
Democratic Governor RodBlagojevich won re-election to a second four-year term scheduled to have ended on January 10, 2011. However, Blagojevich did not complete...
them being the charge of abuse of power. At the state level, Governor RodBlagojevich of Illinois was impeached and unanimously removed from office by the...
August 1, 2016. "Barack Obama, U.S. Senators, state officials urge RodBlagojevich to resign". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on February...
investigations, including those which led to convictions of Illinois Governors RodBlagojevich and George Ryan, media mogul Conrad Black, several aides to Chicago...
A number of controversies related to RodBlagojevich, formerly the Governor of Illinois, were covered in the press during and after his administration...
a major contributor to RodBlagojevich's successful election for governor, Barack Obama's campaigns, Rezko assisted Blagojevich in setting up the state's...
he ran for the seat in the U.S. House of Representatives vacated by RodBlagojevich, who resigned to become governor of Illinois. Emanuel won the first...
governor in 2009 following the impeachment and removal of Governor RodBlagojevich. Quinn was elected as the Democratic nominee, the Illinois Green Party...
has unsuccessfully run for office four more times. Illinois Governor RodBlagojevich appointed Burris to replace President-elect Barack Obama as the junior...
people have been convicted under the section, including Martha Stewart, RodBlagojevich, Michael T. Flynn, Rick Gates, Scooter Libby, Bernard Madoff, and Jeffrey...
relationships with now-convicted former Illinois Governor RodBlagojevich. (See RodBlagojevich controversies.) Her father Michael Madigan, Speaker of the...
Chicago Outfit and the corruption trial of former Governor of Illinois RodBlagojevich. Zagel also sat on the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance...
Richard. His daughter Patricia is married to former Illinois Governor RodBlagojevich. His daughter Deb was elected to the state house of representatives...
Senate held by Roland Burris. Burris, who was appointed by Governor RodBlagojevich to fill the seat vacated by Barack Obama following Obama's election...
daily population of approximately 2000 inmates. In May 2008, Governor RodBlagojevich proposed to shut down the Pontiac facility, with a phase-out plan to...
musician R. Kelly, newspaper owner Conrad Black, and Illinois Governor RodBlagojevich. Genson was born June 30, 1941. He was raised on the West Side of Chicago...
Capitol Steps, poking fun at Illinois politics, especially then-Governor RodBlagojevich. The Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps performs the "Bottle...
marriage. In December 2008, following the arrest of Illinois Governor RodBlagojevich, Currie was named by Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan as the...
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