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Ed Madigan
24th United States Secretary of Agriculture
In office March 8, 1991 – January 20, 1993
President	George H. W. Bush
Preceded by	Clayton Yeutter
Succeeded by	Mike Espy
House Republican Chief Deputy Whip
In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 1989
Leader	Bob Michel
Preceded by	Tom Loeffler
Succeeded by	Steve Gunderson Bob Walker
Chair of the House Republican Research Committee
In office January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1983
Leader	Bob Michel
Preceded by	Trent Lott
Succeeded by	James G. Martin
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois
In office January 3, 1973 – March 8, 1991
Preceded by	William L. Springer (redistricted)
Succeeded by	Thomas W. Ewing
Constituency	21st district (1973–1983) 15th district (1983–1991)
Member of the Illinois House of Representatives from the 47th district
In office January 11, 1967 – January 3, 1973 Serving with Harber H. Hall, J.W. "Bill" Scott, Gerald A. Bradley
Preceded by	At-large district abolished
Succeeded by	Clarence E. Neff A. T. McMaster Samuel M. McGrew
Personal details
Born	Edward Rell Madigan (1936-01-13)January 13, 1936 Lincoln, Illinois, U.S.
Died	December 7, 1994(1994-12-07) (aged 58) Springfield, Illinois, U.S.
Party	Republican
Spouse	Evelyn George ​ (m. 1955)​
Children	3
Education	Lincoln College, Illinois (attended)

Edward Rell Madigan (January 13, 1936 – December 7, 1994) was a businessman and a Republican Party politician from Lincoln, Illinois. He served almost 20 years in the United States House of Representatives and was U.S. Secretary of Agriculture under President George H. W. Bush.

Early life, education, and politics

Madigan was born in Lincoln, Illinois, on January 13, 1936. He attended Lincoln Junior College before starting his own taxicab business.

Politics

He entered public service as a member of the Lincoln Board of Zoning Appeals from 1965 to 1969. During that time, he was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives where he served from 1967 to 1973.^[1]

In November, 1972, he was elected as a Republican to the U.S. House of Representatives, and was subsequently elected to nine more terms. Madigan narrowly lost the race for minority whip in 1989 to future Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich of Georgia. Madigan served in Congress from 1973 to 1991, when Clayton Yeutter resigned, and Madigan was appointed secretary of agriculture. Serving from 1991 to 1993, Madigan was the first Roman Catholic to serve as secretary of agriculture.^[2]

Death and legacy

He died of complications from lung cancer on December 7, 1994, at St. John's Hospital in Springfield, Illinois, at the age of 58. He and his wife, Evelyn, had three daughters.

In 1995, Edward R. Madigan State Fish and Wildlife Area, a state park near Lincoln, was renamed in Madigan's honor. Edward Madigan came from a politically active family. His younger brother Robert Madigan served as the City Clerk for Lincoln, Illinois for several terms, then sat in the Illinois State Senate for 14 years and finally concluded his public service with a brief term on the Illinois Commerce Commission.

In 1984, Illinois native, and future congressman from Nebraska Don Bacon interned in Madigan's Washington, D.C., office.^[3]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Edward Rell Madigan.

• United States Congress. "Ed Madigan (id: M000041)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Appearances on C-SPAN