Burris v. White

State: Illinois

Docket No: 107816 Rel

Case Date: 01/09/2009

Preview:Docket No. 107816.

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

ROLAND W. BURRIS et al., Petitioners, v. JESSE WHITE, Secretary of State, Respondent. Opinion filed January 9, 2009. JUSTICE KARMEIER delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion. Chief Justice Fitzgerald and Justices Freeman, Thomas, Kilbride, Garman and Burke concurred in the judgment and opinion. OPINION The issue presented by this original action for mandamus is whether Jesse White, the Secretary of State of the State of Illinois, is required by section 5(1) of the Secretary of State Act (15 ILCS 305/5(1) (West 2006)) to countersign and affix the seal of the state to the document issued by Governor Rod R. Blagojevich on December 31, 2008, certifying the Governor's appointment of Roland Burris to the United States Senate. For the reasons that follow, we hold that section 5(1) of the Secretary of State Act (15 ILCS 305/5(1) (West 2006)) is inapplicable to the Burris appointment, and that no further action is required by any officer of this state to make that appointment valid. We further hold that the only ministerial act required of the Secretary of State in this case is that he register the appointment in accordance with section 5(2) of the Secretary of State Act (15 ILCS 305/5(2) (West 2006)). The Secretary of State having performed that responsibility on December 31, 2008, the writ of mandamus is

denied. Background Following the November 4, 2008, general election, a majority of the members of the Electoral College voted in favor of Barack H. Obama for the office of President of the United States. See U.S. Const., amend. XII. At the time of the general election, Presidentelect Obama was the junior United States Senator from Illinois. In anticipation of assuming the Presidency, President-elect Obama resigned his Senate seat, leaving that post vacant. The seventeenth amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "[w]hen vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointment until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct." U.S. Const., amend. XVII. Pursuant to the power conferred on it by this amendment, the Illinois General Assembly empowered its executive, i.e., the Governor, to make temporary appointments for the office of United States Senator. It has done so through enactment of section 25

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