Even by the low standards of Illinois governors, Rod Blagojevich is notably notorious for corruption. A former Congressman who was the Democratic governor of that state from 2003 to 2009, Blagojevich, was part of a corruption scandal that, among other things, entailed the attempted auctioning of the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama when he was elected president.
Blagojevich was impeached as governor and removed from office. He was later tried and convicted, after which he served nearly eight years out of a 14-year sentence that was among the longest for political corruption in history. Numerous Illinois governors have gotten into trouble with the law, and Blagojevich’s predecessor, George Ryan, had also gone to prison. But Blagojevich is the only governor of that state to be impeached and removed from office.
SCOOP: President Donald Trump is expected to pardon former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, according to a person familiar with the plans https://t.co/QCLNeJI6lc
— Axios (@axios) February 10, 2025
Key to Blagojevich’s notoriety is that, after the scandal broke, he went on TV and gave interviews frequently to proclaim his innocence. He also appeared on the Donald Trump-hosted The Celebrity Apprentice after his removal as governor but before he went to prison.
Stay up-to-date with the latest news!
Subscribe and start recieving our daily emails.
This brought him into Trump’s orbit, and shortly before the end of his first presidency in 2020, Trump commuted his sentence. That let Blagojevich out of prison but let his convictions stand. Axios reports that Trump is expected to fully pardon the former governor.
🚨 JUST IN: President Trump is planning to pardon former IL Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Blagojevich was convicted of 17 federal corruption charges in 2011, including wire fraud and conspiracy to solicit bribes, and impeached by an overwhelming vote of the Illinois Legislature. He was… pic.twitter.com/8VCfNnJ2cy
— The Washington Observer (@WashObserver) February 10, 2025
Blagojevich, despite being a Democrat for his entire political career, has supported Trump for office, even attending the Republican convention in 2024.
A Politico report last week stated that Trump was considering naming Blagojevich the U.S. ambassador to Serbia; the ex-governor had chaired a group called Serbians for Trump in 2024.
It’s not clear if such a posting is still on the table. An ambassadorship would require Senate confirmation, and as Politico reported last week, such a move “may alienate Republican senators and gain little to no support from Democrats” while also raising questions about the optics of sending a politician convicted of corruption to a country where corruption has historically been a problem.
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
