Rep. Barbara Hernandez (D-Aurora) debates a bill in the House on March 1. [Blue Room Stream] 

It started as a headache — something that’s not unusual for anyone who works in the state capitol in the middle of spring session. But when she began feeling worse, Rep. Barbara Hernandez (D-Aurora) soon found out she was having a potentially life-threatening stroke.

Aurora mayor and Republican gubernatorial candidate Richard Irvin held his first news conference since announcing he was running for governor, but he answered few questions directly. And Illinois Supreme Court Justice Rita Garman announced she will retire in July.

Left, Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin speaks about findings in an audit of the LaSalle Veterans’ Home COVID-19 outbreak at a news conference Monday. Right, Gov. JB Pritzker addresses the audit last week. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line & Blue Room Stream]

After a state audit found the Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration failed to adequately respond to a November 2020 COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home, Pritzker’s potential Republican challengers have slammed the first-term governor as the safety of the state’s veterans’ homes becomes a core issue in a second straight gubernatorial election.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks about an audit on the COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home at a news conference at the Capitol on Thursday. [Blue Room Stream] 

Lawmakers in both parties are calling for more hearings to investigate what happened at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home during a November 2020 COVID-19 outbreak after the Auditor General released a report showing the state’s Department of Public Health did not take the outbreak seriously.

From left to right, U.S. Rep. Sean Casten, Burr Ridge Mayor Gary Grasso, U.S. Rep. Marie Newman and Rob Cruz discuss 2022 campaign issues at The Mecca Center in Willowbrook Friday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

U.S. Reps. Marie Newman of LaGrange and Sean Casten of Downers Grove squared off in a Willowbrook forum Friday less than two months before the incumbent Democrats face off in the Democratic primary for who will represent the new 6th Congressional District.

Rep. Chris Miller (R-Oakland) speaks at a news conference at Trump Tower Thursday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

Five of the General Assembly’s most conservative lawmakers are establishing an Illinois chapter of the State Freedom Caucus Network modeled after Congress’ conservative House caucus, they announced at a Trump Tower event Thursday.

Fitch upgraded Illinois’ credit rating by two spots Thursday, marking Illinois’ fifth credit upgrade in the last year. And Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill Thursday to extend buyout options for the state’s pension plan.

The LaSalle Veterans’ Home is pictured in 2020. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

A report released Thursday by Auditor General Frank Mautino found Illinois Department of Public Health officials did not take reports of a 2020 COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home in November 2020 seriously, refuting an earlier state investigation that blamed the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (IDVA) for the crisis.

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg joined Gov. JB Pritzker and U.S. Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.) to highlight infrastructure investments at the opening of a new Pace bus terminal in Joliet. And a new poll shows Richard Irvin has a 12-point lead in the Republican primary even as many voters remain undecided.

JC Kibbey from the Natural Resource Defense Council, left, Rep. Larry Walsh (D-Joliet), middle, and Mark Denzler from the Illinois Manufactures’ Association, right, speak during the House Public Utilities Committee Wednesday.

Business leaders are asking lawmakers to address a gap in the 2021 Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) they say is driving up costs for consumers and threatens blackouts because the law narrowly defines clean energy sources. But an environmental group is pushing back, saying polluters are simply looking for a back door out of the law’s tougher energy requirements.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks with at a news conference with a group of Democratic lawmakers Tuesday. [Blue Room Stream] 

Gov. JB Pritzker and General Assembly Democrats denounced a draft U.S. Supreme Court decision Politico released Monday that hints the high court will overturn the 1973 ruling on Roe v. Wade that affirmed abortion as a legal practice.

A property tax bill is pictured. 

Illinois is home to more than 8,000 units of local government. A bill passed during the spring session will for the first time force local leaders to weigh whether all the districts really need to stick around.

Democratic candidates to succeed Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago) in the 13th House district met at a forum Monday and focused their answers on energy policy. And Chicago officially became a candidate to host the 2024 Democratic National Convention after posting a video online.

Members of SEIU Local 73 march during a 2021 strike. [Facebook/SEIU Local 73] 

In the final hours of the spring session, lawmakers set the language voters will see at the polls in November asking them to vote on whether to ratify the “Workers’ Rights Amendment” and make collective bargaining a constitutional right in Illinois.

A new poll found Gov. JB Pritzker has a positive approval rating among Illinois voters. And the Illinois Gaming Board will accept applications for two more online sports betting applications after approving one on Thursday.

Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), left, and Gov. JB Pritzker, right, announce endorsements from groups that support or oppose abortion, respectively.

Groups in favor or in opposition to abortion have lined up behind their candidates in the Illinois governor’s race as a looming U.S. Supreme Court ruling is set to make abortion a major issue in the 2022 election.

Gov. JB Pritzker signs bills to reduce the teacher shortage at Springfield High School Thursday. [Gov. JB Pritzker Facebook]

Gov. JB Pritzker signed four bills into law Wednesday intended to alleviate the state’s teacher shortage by making it easier for people to become substitute teachers and spend more time in the classroom.

AJ Wilhelmi, CEO of the Illinois Hospital Association, speaks during a panel hosted by Health News Illinois Wednesday. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Illinois lawmakers made strides to boost funding for health care services and reform reimbursement structures for hospitals and nursing homes during the spring legislative session, but officials say the next challenge will be making sure funding can be sustained in future budget years.

Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) points to an empty chair for Richard Irvin during a forum for Republican candidates for governor in Washington on Monday. Seated behind Bailey from left to right is Jesse Sullivan, Gary Rabine, Max Solomon and Paul Schimpf. [Blue Room Stream]

Five of the six Republican candidates for governor spent Monday night explaining to Republican voters what sets them apart from Gov. JB Pritzker and one of their opponents, Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin, who did not attend the Tazewell County forum.

Gov. JB Pritzker and General Assembly Democrats pose for a picture after Pritzker signed the budget on April 19. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

As concern grows about hate crimes against religious and minority groups, Illinois’ Fiscal Year 2023 budget stands to give first-time funding to a program established five years ago to help organizations with security costs.