Kane County Reporter

Republican state House candidate Laura Curtis admits her litmus test has lingered far longer than she hoped it would.

“Now is the time to speak out against Speaker (Mike) Madigan,” Curtis said. “Yet many Democrats are staying quiet, including my opponent Maura Hirschauer. It’s been nine days since Speaker Madigan was implicated in the ComEd scandal. Your silence says everything.”

Curtis, a North Aurora trustee, is running against the Democrat in the 49th House District. 

After nearly four decades of being in control in Springfield, Madigan now finds himself at the center of an unfolding federal corruption probe involving ComEd. Federal prosecutors contend the company engaged in a “years-long bribery scheme” involving jobs, contracts and payments that were steered to him in his role as house speaker and chairman of the Illinois Democratic Party.

To date, no charges have been filed against the state’s longest-serving lawmaker, but prosecutors have not been shy in asserting that the utility giant sought to “influence and reward” Madigan by providing financial benefits to those directly tied to him.

“My opponent still has not called for his resignation,” Curtis added. “Today, I received a mailing from her campaign. One of the bullet points states that she will demand government reform. So why has she not called for the speaker’s resignation? Is she waiting to see how big a check Madigan will write to buy her silence? Or is she taking cues from her predecessor, Karina Villa, who took $1.4 million from Madigan?”

A Madigan spokesperson recently stated that he plans to cooperate with the probe, adding “The speaker has never helped someone find a job with the expectation that the person would not be asked to perform work by their employer, nor did he ever expect to provide anything to a prospective employer if it should choose to hire a person he recommended.”