Pat Quinn was elevated to governor on Jan. 29, 2009, when the Illinois Senate voted unanimously to remove Rod Blagojevich.

Quinn was twice elected lieutenant governor, in 2002 and 2006.

Quinn was elected to the Cook County Board of Tax Appeals in 1982 and served one term. He also served a term as state treasurer after being elected in 1990 and followed that with an unsuccessful run for secretary of state in 1994.

(Last updated by Christopher Wills on March 23, 2009.)

Roland W. Burris was sworn in January 15, 2009 to take over the seat vacated by Barack Obama after he was elected president. Burris was appointed to the seat by then Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Burris' appointment was controversial because Blagojevich was charged in December 2008 by federal prosecutors with attempting to sell the senate seat to the highest bidder to benefit himself financially. There was never any allegation of wrongdoing on the part of Burris. Blagojevich has denied any wrongdoing.

Lawmakers in Illinois and in Washington implored Blagojevich not to fill the Senate seat in the wake of his arrest, insisting that any candidate he named would not be considered a legitimate replacement. Senate Democrats initially moved to block Burris from being seated by wrangling over the paperwork associated with his appointment. They eventually relented and Burris was sworn in.

But Burris' appointment will long be associated with the scandal-tainted Blagojevich and he will have to survive the 2010 re-election to hold on to the seat handed to him.

Burris is no stranger to elections, having won — and lost — his share of them. He was the first black elected to statewide office, serving three terms as Illinois comptroller from 1979 to 1991. He also served one term as Illinois attorney general from 1991 to 1995.

But he hasn't had much luck in elections since 1990, losing three tries for the Democratic nomination for governor and one run for Chicago mayor.

When Burris wanted to get into politics, he failed in his first bid — a 1968 run for the Illinois House. He got into political work five years later when he was appointed as an aide to then Gov. Dan Walker.)

(Last updated by Christopher Wills on March 23, 2009.)

Dick Durbin was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1996, defeating Republican Al Salvi with 56 percent of the vote. He defeated state Rep. Jim Durkin, a Republican from Chicago's suburbs, in 2002 with 60 percent of the vote.

In 2008, Durbin defeated Republican opponent Dr. Steve Sauerberg, a family physician from the Chicago suburb of Western Springs, with 68 percent of the vote.

Durbin, who served in the U.S. House from 1983-97, won his congressional races with at least 60 percent of the vote until a new political map changed his Springfield, Ill.-area district in 1992. In that election, he received 57 percent of the vote; it was down to 55 percent in 1994.

(Last updated by Christopher Wills on March 23, 3009.)