Illinois ethics report on ex-Rep. Harry Benton made public after months under wraps

Illinois House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch (D-Hillside) is in the hot seat after the state's legislative inspector general's office released a report of allegations against now former state Rep. Harry Benton, and now critics are questioning how long the speaker knew about those allegations and didn't take decisive action.

The Illinois Legislative Ethics Commission, an eight-member bipartisan panel of state lawmakers that oversees the inspector general's office, voted earlier this month to release the report. The full report was published on the commission's website on Friday.

Documents that had been kept under wraps for months were released after Benton and his accuser were both given a chance to review them, suggest redactions to protect privacy, and provide a response to be published with the report.

Benton resigned his position earlier this month after the inspector general's report called his behavior "outrageous, unethical, and unprofessional."

A woman who worked for Benton complained to Speaker Welch's office in 2023, sending a lengthy email accusing Benton of sexual harassment, according to the report.

But Legislative Inspector General Michael McCuskey did not begin an investigation until this year, and critics are asking what took so long.

"I think that the time that passed from '23 to '26 is entirely too long for something to go unaddressed of this nature," said Illinois state Rep. Jeff Keicher (R-Sycamore), a member of the Illinois Legislative Ethics Commission.

A seven-page summary report derails a pattern of sexual harassment by Benton, who was first elected to the Illinois House in 2022.

In 2023, the allegations against him began. The victim claims Benton told her during her first week in office, "The reason I ran for office was to get away from my wife," according to an email she sent to Welch's chief of staff.

That woman claimed Benton "sent me a picture of an OnlyFans model on accident? He asked me to send it back." She said Benton then added, "Makes me feel better now I have this on you."

Welch's staff claims they confronted Benton via zoom after receiving that email, but Benton's response to that was not clear.

House Republicans responded to the report, questioning why Welch didn't immediately refer the allegations to the legislative inspector general's office.

"Why wasn't the first complaint enough?" said Illinois House Minority Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savanna).

In February of this year, Welch's attorney asked the legislative inspector general to investigate after two other state lawmakers spoke out against Benton. That investigation began in March.

The summary report details two "founded" complaints against Benton, one alleging he sexually harassed a female staffer by touching her back at a late-night bar, making her feel "uneasy."

Another complaint claimed Benton asked a female lobbyist "You want to get out of here and have some fun?" That lobbyist later wrote in a letter that Benton also told her she was "too hot to be a lobbyist."

The lobbyist explained her frustration to rule as "unfounded" her claims Benton had shown people photos of women on his phone who he claimed to be sleeping. McCuskey dismissed that specific claim as "hearsay."

Illinois state Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago), who is a member of the Legislative Ethics Commission, issued a statement following the panel's report, saying the report makes it clear Benton should have been forced to resign sooner "before he was able to do so much additional harm to more women."

Cassidy also took Welch to task for his handling of the investigation into Benton.

"Had the Speaker intervened meaningfully in 2023, he may have been able to prevent the victimization of the other two women, who were harassed in May 2025 and January 2026, respectively. Instead, $1.4 million was spent to reelect Benton to his seat in 2024," Cassidy said in a statement. "The Speaker must demonstrate a sincere desire to repair the harm he has done, and to correct the broken system in which we are all operating. To date, that has not been the spirit of his response. Instead, we have heard a series of excuses, victim blaming, and a failure to publicly acknowledge shortcomings. That has been disappointing."

Welch released the following statement in part, thanking the commission for releasing the report. In his statement, Welch shared plans to work with all members of the House to "explore creating a centralized human resources office to assist all members as employers and support their district office employees." 

"The report reaffirms confidence that our office acted responsibly—following legal guidance, respecting the wishes of those who came forward, and taking decisive action as additional information established a pattern of misconduct. 

We will work together to strengthen our laws, improve our policies, modernize our practices, and continue building a General Assembly worthy of the trust placed in it by every employee, every legislator, and every Illinois resident we are privileged to serve."

Benton could not be reached for comment.