Illinois state Rep. Terra Costa Howard (D-Glen Ellyn) is among at least six state lawmakers known to have taken campaign contributions from a former top associate of House Speaker Mike Madigan now embroiled in an ongoing criminal probe.
The home of Mike McClain, a former state lawmaker and lobbyist with longtime ties to Madigan, was one of several raided by federal agents in May along with former Chicago Ald. Michael Zalewski and former Madigan aide Kevin Quinn.
According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, McClain donated $200 in October 2018. Nearly a month later, Costa Howard knocked off two-time Republican incumbent Peter Breen in the 48th District with nearly 54 percent of the vote.
During the course of her 2018 campaign, Chicago City Wire reported that Costa Howard received another $1,546,160 from Madigan’s coffers.
Illinois Policy Institute reports that in order to obtain a search warrant, authorities were required to convince a judge of probable cause of a crime, and that evidence of a crime existed in each home. Over the years, McClain was thought to be as close to Madigan as anyone and was often seen dining and traveling with the longest-serving legislative leader in U.S. history.
