Speaker Welch to Rep. Harry Benton: Resign or be expelled

SPRINGFIELD — After months of silence, Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch on Wednesday called for embattled Rep. Harry Benton to resign and promised to initiate expulsion proceedings against the Plainfield Democrat if he doesn’t.

Welch’s demand comes five months after he kicked Benton out of the Democratic caucus and stripped him of his committee assignments with no public explanation. Capitol News Illinois later confirmed that allegations of sexual harassment were made against Benton, a two-term legislator who represents a southwest suburban Chicago swing district, and that the matter had been referred to the legislative inspector general’s office.

“The Legislative Inspector General’s findings reveal clear patterns of conduct by Representative Benton that are outrageous, unethical, and unbecoming of a member of the Illinois House of Representatives,” Welch said in a statement, adding that Benton’s exile from the caucus — at LIG Mike McCuskey’s recommendation — “will remain in place permanently.”

Benton did not immediately return a request for comment.

McCuskey told Capitol News Illinois that he completed his investigation and delivered his findings to Welch’s office Wednesday afternoon. Welch and Benton now have 20 days to respond in writing to the LIG. Welch’s response would include details of any corrective or disciplinary action imposed. If McCuskey determines the action to be “appropriate and adequate,” he must file a report with the Legislative Ethics Commission within 30 days detailing why he isn’t filing a complaint. The case would then be closed.

McCuskey declined further comment. His report, at least for now, will not be made public.

Only the Legislative Ethics Commission, an eight-member board comprised of an equal number of Democrats and Republicans from both legislative chambers, can make it so. And that’s only done in cases resulting in at least a three-day suspension, termination or as part of the public record of a disciplinary hearing held by the LEC. It’s unclear if Benton’s case falls under any of those categories. The last time a report was made public was 2020.

Details have largely been murky

The Benton situation has been a mystery, with his colleagues, legislative staff and lobbyists in the Capitol as well as his constituents back home left largely in the dark.

Welch told reporters when pressed in April and again in his statement on Wednesday that he refrained from commenting on the allegations “to protect the privacy of those who came forward, preserve the integrity of the investigation, respect due process, and comply with the guidance and legal requirements established in our ethics procedures.”

Benton, who continued to show up for work in the Capitol throughout the spring, has thus far declined to address his exile and the investigation opened into his alleged conduct.

In a statement, the Illinois House Republican Organization called Benton “a disgrace.”

“One way or another, he won’t be a state representative come January,” the caucus said in a statement. “He can leave through the front door, or the voters can throw him out in November.”

Benton, who ran unopposed in the Democratic primary in March, faces a rematch against Republican Gabby Shanahan in November. The far southwest suburban House district is one of the most competitive in the state, with Benton defeating Shanahan by about 4.5 percentage points in 2024.

Shanahan did not call for Benton to resign or drop out, but noted in a statement that voters have “a better choice” in November.

“I’ll always be honest,” she said. “I’ll always put the people of this district first. And I’ll show up every single day to work for lower taxes, safer communities, and a government worthy of your trust.”

Replacing Benton on the ballot?

If Benton resigns and withdraws his name from the November ballot, the Democratic Party chairs in Kendall and Will counties would select the person who would complete his term and replace him on the ballot. The latter must be done no later than August 20, the day prior to the Illinois State Board of Elections’ certification of the general election ballot.

It would take a two-thirds vote of the full House to expel Benton, or 79 affirmative votes. Democrats have a 78-40 advantage over Republicans in the chamber, though Benton and Rep. Fred Crespo, D-Hoffman Estates, are not members of the supermajority caucus.

The last House member to be expelled was Rep. Derrick Smith, D-Chicago, in 2012. It came after Smith was accused of taking a $7,000 cash bribe. He later returned to the House after winning reelection but was automatically removed when he was convicted of bribery in 2014.

The Illinois House is not scheduled to return to Springfield until November.

Welch, who succeeded now incarcerated Michael Madigan as speaker in 2021, has not been afraid to wield the power of his gavel against his own members.

Former state Rep. Mary Flowers, D-Chicago, was stripped of her leadership position and banned from caucus meetings in 2023 for alleged poor treatment of staff and her colleagues. The speaker later backed a successful primary challenge to Flowers.

And Crespo was stripped of his committee chairmanships and expelled from the caucus for working on a budget plan independent of and unauthorized by House Democratic leadership. Welch later told Capitol News Illinois that Crespo needed to “apologize” before he lets him back into the caucus. The two are not on speaking terms.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.