Minutes after the vote, House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago) predicted the full House would impeach Blagojevich as soon as Friday, the first such action in state history.
A Blagojevich spokesman said the governor would not heed some lawmakers' calls to resign before the full House votes. The spokesman said the governor was working in his Chicago office at the time of the vote but was not monitoring the impeachment panel hearing. Blagojevich left for home after 6 p.m.
Blagojevich's press office put out a statement saying the impeachment panel's vote was not a surprise and predicted a "different" outcome in the Senate.
"The outcome was a foregone conclusion, especially when you consider the committee released its report hours before wrapping up testimony. The governor believes that the impeachment proceedings were flawed, biased and did not follow the rules of law....In all, the governor's rights to due process were deprived. When the case moves to the actual Senate, an actual judge will preside over the hearings, and the governor believes the outcome will be much different," the statement read.
Full story and video at Chicago Breaking News.
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