Manar to Resign from IL Senate, Join Pritzker Administration as Senior Advisor

By Jeremy Coumbes on January 4, 2021 at 2:31pm

A State Senator is stepping down from the legislature to move into the executive branch of state government.

48th District State Senator Andy Manar announced today he will resign his seat in the Illinois Senate effective January 17th. Manar is a Bunker Hill, Illinois native who has served for eight years in the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly.

Manar said in a statement on his resignation during the noon hour today, his wife and teenage children have never known a day he was not an elected official, and the time has come for someone new to take up the call in the Illinois Senate.

Manar was elected as a member of the Bunker Hill City Council in 1997, elected mayor of Bunker Hill in 2001 and served as Chair of the Macoupin County Board prior to his election to the Illinois Senate in 2012.

Less than 20 minutes following Manar’s resignation announcement, Governor J.B. Pritzker announced he has named Manar to serve as a Senior Adviser in his administration.

According to the Governor’s announcement, Manar will begin the role on January 19, shortly after he steps down from the Illinois Senate. He reportedly will work closely with the governor on his agenda and key priorities. Manar will advise the governor on a range of issues, including downstate economic revitalization, appropriations, and COVID-19 recovery efforts.

Pritzker said of Manar, “Andy has been one of the most thoughtful and successful lawmakers of his generation, and he will be a trusted advisor,” citing Manar’s efforts to reform education funding, and election laws as well as his recent effort to push legislation lowering the cost of insulin in Illinois.

A replacement to fill the vacancy in the 48th Legislative District will be chosen by the Democratic Party Chairs in Christian, Macon, Macoupin, Madison, Montgomery, and Sangamon Counties.

According to Manar's announcement today, he and his family will remain in Bunker Hill, three blocks from his childhood home.