Gubernatorial candidates select their running mates when filing for office and appear on the primary election ballot together.

From the impeachment of Rod Blagojevich in 2009, until the inauguration of Sheila Simon in 2011, Attorney General Lisa Madigan would have become governor if Pat Quinn had vacated the office.

The lieutenant governor of Illinois handles a variety of responsibilities which have been delegated to the office via statute.

Prior to the adoption of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, the lieutenant governor also served as the president of the Senate.

Losing this position made the lieutenant governor's job less significant, and contributed to the "boredom" cited by Jim Thompson's first lieutenant governor, Dave O'Neal, who resigned from the office in 1981.

Inauguration takes place on the second Monday in January following a gubernatorial election.