Tom Cross (politician)
| Tom Cross | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Member of the Illinois House of Representatives from the 97th district | |
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In office January 1993 – January 14, 2015 |
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| Succeeded by | Mark Batinick |
| Minority Leader of the Illinois House of Representatives | |
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In office January 2002 – August 29, 2013 |
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| Preceded by | Lee Daniels |
| Succeeded by | Jim Durkin |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
July 31, 1958 Nashville, Tennessee |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Genie Cross |
| Children | Two |
| Residence | Oswego, Illinois |
| Alma mater |
Cumberland Law School Illinois Wesleyan University |
| Profession | Attorney |
| Religion | United Methodist |
Tom Cross (born July 31, 1958) is a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives, representing the 97th district (previously the 84th district) where he served from 1993 to 2015. He served as House Minority Leader from January 2002 to August 2013, when he resigned to run for Illinois Treasurer.
During his time as House Republican leader, Cross joined with then Senate Republican leader Frank Watson to referee the "rancorous" relationship between House and Senate Democrats and Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich.
In February 2009, Cross and fellow Republican, ranking impeachment committee member Jim Durkin, spoke out about a follow-on controversy over the impeachment testimony of then-U.S. Senator Roland Burris. Burris had been named by Blagojevich to fill President Barack Obama's Senate seat, after the emergence of the corruption charges against Blagojevich but before Blagojevich's removal from office.
Burris had reportedly not mentioned fund-raising contacts allegedly made to him by Blagojevich's brother, Robert Blagojevich, in his testimony, but then filed an affidavit with Democrat impeachment committee chair Barbara Flynn Currie, listing three such contacts, shortly after February 5. Word of the new information did not reach the public, or the Republicans in the House, until its release in the Chicago Sun-Times on February 13. Cross was quoted as saying "We [Republicans] find it ironic that at the same time Democrats are forming a new committee to clean up corruption, they are sitting on critical information related to the biggest corruption scandal our state has ever seen."
Incumbent Treasurer Dan Rutherford ran for Illinois Governor, leaving the seat of Illinois Treasurer open. After considering running for Illinois Attorney General, Cross decided to run for Treasurer. He faced DuPage County Auditor Bob Grogan in the Republican primary on March 18, 2014, but defeated him, 57%-43%. Cross went on to face Democratic nominee Mike Frerichs in the general election on November 4, 2014.
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