Sieben to resign March 6, Updated x1

February 28th, 2008 at 03:47pm Andrea Zimmermann

Sen. Todd Sieben, R-Geneseo, today said he intends to resign, and in effect retire from the Illinois Senate, on March 6.

In late January, Sieben said he planned to retire after the Feb. 5 primary to help pave the way for fellow Republican Tim Bivins, a retired Lee County sheriff.

Republican Bivins would therefore enter the Nov. 4 general election as the incumbent, potentially giving him a significant edge over Democrat Marty Mulcahey.

Since the Senate seat is held by a Republican, the district’s GOP chairmen get to pick Sieben’s successor. The district covers much of northwestern Illinois, stretching from western Winnebago County through Freeport to Galena and south to Geneseo. …

Mulcahey said the move smacks of insider, old-school politics — an attitude he claims he would counter as a legislator. …

The Senate district leans strongly Republican, so this development seems like bad news for Mulcahey. It’s largely rural with scattered urban pockets. In the 2004 presidential race, George W. Bush won 56.2 percent of the vote. Democrat John Kerry won just 43.8 percent.

Sieben has had a 30-year career in politics, where he served in the Senate for 16 years. He also spent three terms in House. He is assistant Republican Senate leader.

UPDATE 1

Senators honored Sieben on the chamber’s floor today, as he presented his final bill as a senator.

No one seemed to really care about the contents of the bill during the debate. Instead, one after another, senators on both sides of the aisle spoke fondly of the retiring Republican.

“You exemplify what it really means to be a statesman,” said Sen. Jacqueline Collins, D-Chicago.

Sen. Kimberly Lightford, D-Maywood, was one of several lawmakers who said they considered Sieben a mentor, particularly when they were freshman senators.

“I don’t have any opposition to the bill, but I do have opposition to Sen. Sieben leaving us,” Lightford said. “I appreciate all the support you have given us over the years, and like you say, you watched me grow here.”

Sen. Brad Burzynski, R-Clare, joked with Sieben about the possibility of him staying in the Senate longer.

“If this bill goes down in defeat today, will you stay in the General Assembly long enough to pass it?” Burzynski asked.

In response, Sieben said:

“That decision has been a challenging one since last August, but this will be my last effort for sure so I hope the (voting) board doesn’t go too red too long,” he said.

As Sen. Rickey Hendon, D-Chicago, opened voting, more than two dozen legislators voted against the bill.

Then slowly a few legislators changed their ‘No’ votes to ‘Yes,’ and suddenly in snowball-like fashion, the ‘No’-voting senators flipped their votes as well.

As Hendon called for the last votes to be cast, the Senate fell silent, watching the board’s final two ‘No’ votes.

Burzynski, as if toying with the idea of pursuading Sieben to stick around, finally flipped his ‘No’ vote to ‘Yes.’ The Senate erupted in cheers, and Sieben, triumphantly throwing his fist in the air, ended his legislative career with his final bill passing, 51-0.

Entry Filed under: Illinois Senate, Tim Bivins, Todd Sieben