Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has been ousted from office after being convicted of abusing his powers.

Senators voted 59-0 against him after an impeachment hearing, despite his claim that he had “done nothing wrong” and there was no evidence of a crime.

He was charged with trying to sell the seat vacated by Barack Obama when he was elected president.

In a second vote, Mr Blagojevich was banned from holding public office in Illinois for life.

He had been arrested in December and faces a criminal trial over bribes allegedly taken during his two terms.

No other Illinois governor has been impeached, let alone convicted in a Senate trial.

Mr Blagojevich has now been replaced as governor by Patrick Quinn, a fellow Democrat and the state’s lieutenant governor.

After being sworn in, Mr Quinn told the senate “the ordeal is over”.

He said the elected representatives had “reflected the will of the people”.

“Now it’s our job to call upon the people of Illinois to make the sacrifices necessary to address the serious challenges we have before us,” Mr Quinn said.

‘No evidence’

In a last-minute bid to save his position, Mr Blagojevich addressed his trial on Thursday, having earlier said he would not take any part.

He told senators: “There is no evidence that shows there was any wrongdoing by me as governor.”

He expressed annoyance that he was not able download download comedy movie action movie to bring his own witnesses.

He said President Barack Obama’s chief-of-staff Rahm Emanuel was one witness he would have liked to question, but rules prevented him from doing so.

He appealed to senators, at the end of the four-day trial, to consider his position, saying: “Think if you were innocent and rushed out of office.

Norman gentle

“A crime has not been proven. How can you throw a governor out of office with incomplete evidence?”

But his speech appeared to have little effect on the senators.

“I sort of looked at him as a magician and we’ve all been wowed. But all the magic is gone,” one senator told the Chicago Tribune.

“I am immune to his speech giving, because we’ve seen those tricks before. He can look sincere, he gives a good speech and he’s a good performer. Perhaps he can get a job in the arts,” she said.

FBI evidence

Since Mr Blagojevich was arrested last month, he has persistently denied the charges against him and has refused to resign.

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