Wilhour to Serve on Committee Reviewing Process Used to Select Arroyo's Replacement in House

Local State Representative Blaine Wilhour of Beecher City has been chosen to serve on the Qualifications Challenge Committee that will review the process of selecting Eva Dina Delgado to replace Luis Arroyo in the Illinois House.

Delgado was selected after Arroyo resigned from the House after federal authorities charged him with bribery of a state senator.

Wilhour said House Speaker Michael Madigan had warned the chamber would challenge the qualifications of anyone chosen with votes from the 36th Ward, where Arroyo remains the committeeman. Though Arroyo didn't attend the meeting of district committeemen, he gave his votes to an ally to cast as proxy votes. Those votes, Wilhour said, were enough to control the selection.

Earlier this month, Illinois House Republican leader Jim Durkin and St. Rep. Anne Stava-Murray of Naperville, a Democrat, both filed formal charges to Delgado's appointment. The committee will meet February 25 to establish the rules for the complaint evaluation process. Under House rules, a three-fifths vote of the whole chamber is necessary to remove a member.