Richard T. Bradley was a
Democratic
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
member of the
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...
from 1997 to 2009.
Political career
Bradley was appointed to the Illinois House of Representatives in April 1997 to represent the 20th district after the resignation of
Joseph Kotlarz.
He was re-elected in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006.
In 2008,
Deb Mell, daughter of
Ald. Richard Mell and sister-in-law of Illinois Governor
Rod Blagojevich
Rod Blagojevich ( , born December 10, 1956), often referred to by his nicknames "Blago" or "B-Rod", is an American former politician, political commentator, and convicted felon who served as the 40th governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009, when ...
, announced that she was running for the 40th District seat. Bradley subsequently decided to run for the
Illinois Senate
The Illinois Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state, State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adop ...
against state Sen.
Iris Martinez
Iris Y. Martinez (born February 25, 1956) is an American politician and administrator. In 2020, she was elected Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County. She previously served as a member of the Illinois Senate, representing the 20th district ...
rather than face Mell. Martinez was re-elected in February 2008, defeating Bradley and another candidate.
In August 2008, Blagojevich claimed that House Democrats who held city of
Chicago jobs were fearful of voting in favor of his 2008 capital bill because they thought House Speaker
Michael Madigan
Michael Joseph Madigan (born April 19, 1942) is an American politician who is the former speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives. He was the longest-serving leader of any state or federal legislative body in the history of the United Sta ...
might be able to get them fired.
Blagojevich told reporters: "They fear their leader, Mr. Madigan, and if Mike Madigan tells them to vote a certain way, they will tell you privately, and I've had these discussions with a couple of state reps, one of whom said, 'I'm afraid if I vote for the jobs bill I'll be fired from my job at Streets and Sanitations
ic I'm afraid I'll lose my job.'"
The one state legislator who worked at the
Streets and Sanitation Department in Chicago was Bradley, who told the ''
Chicago Sun-Times'' that he hadn't talked to Blagojevich in about two years.
Political positions
Bradley said that he opposed Blagojevich's 2008 capital bill because the House Latino Caucus disagreed with its provisions as written.
References
External links
Project Vote Smart - Representative Richard T. Bradley (IL)profile
*''Follow the Money'' - Richard T Bradley
20062004200220001998
campaign contributions
profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradley, Richard T.
Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives
1955 births
Living people
Politicians from Chicago
21st-century American politicians