With Scott Lee Cohen officially off the ticket, Gov. Pat Quinn appeared before reporters this morning, who peppered him with questions about how he and party leaders will go about slating a new Democratic candidate to run as lieutenant governor this fall. During the press conference, Quinn hinted that he has a few running mates in mind, but offered no clues about who is on his shortlist. He did make two things clear, however: that his ideal candidate will have "progressive values" and that he's willing to look beyond the handful of Democrats who ran for the lieutenant governor's job during the primary to find a good match.

"This next assignment [is] finding a good running mate who speaks for the people of Illinois especially on progressive values," Quinn said, "values of protecting consumers, making sure everyone has a fighting chance for a good job. That's what the Democratic Party is all about." Watch:

A decision should come "sooner rather than later," Quinn noted, and could even pre-date the upcoming March 15 meeting of the Democratic State Central Committee, which will officially select Cohen's replacement.