Governor Pritzker sworn in for second term

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - In a ceremony held at the Bank of Springfield Center, the state's top elected officials took the oath of office today.

J.B Pritzker was sworn in for his second term as Governor with Julianna Stratton joining him for her second term as Lieutenant Governor. Kwame Raoul, Susana Mendoza, and Michael Frerichs all were sworn in to continue their roles, while Alexi Giannoulias took the oath for his first term as Secretary of State.

Several groups performed at the ceremony including the Southern Illinois Children's Reunion Choir, the Illinois Air National Guard Band of the Midwest, and Uniting Voices Chicago.

In his inaugural address, Governor JB Pritzker discussed the challenges of the last four years.

"The difficult thing about governing through unprecedented times is that it’s your job to set the precedent, to find a path, even when none appears to exist … to lift up the front-line heroes, the essential workers on whom we all rely, to make the hard decisions to protect those doing the very hard work of keeping us all together," said Pritzker.

The governor said he has been disheartened by the increase in hate crimes and gun violence not only in the state, but in the country as well. He said amidst the challenges of the term, he is proud of the work his administration and the legislators have been able to accomplish.

"We took nation-leading climate action that’s growing our energy production, instituted nursing home reforms to increase staffing and safety, saved taxpayers money by consolidating pension systems, and provided real middle class tax relief to help families overcome inflation," said Pritzker. "We added better paying jobs, grew our economy to a trillion dollars, protected workers’ rights, and expanded healthcare coverage. Amid a rise in intolerance and fascism throughout the United States with increasing attacks on our most vulnerable populations, Illinois has decisively moved to protect civil rights, human rights, and voting rights by enshrining them directly in state statute.”