Illinois Senate GOP leader suffers stroke

SPRINGFIELD -- Illinois Senate Republican Leader Frank Watson has suffered a minor stroke.

Watson spokeswoman Patty Schuh said Sunday evening that Watson has been hospitalized since Friday afternoon in St. Louis. She said he started to feel ill while campaigning for GOP Senate candidate Ken Burzynski of Benton.

Watson represents the state's 51st district in the southern Illinois city of Greenville. Schuh says doctors consider the stroke "very minor" and Watson is expected to make a full recovery. She said the 63-year-old senator remained in the St. Louis hospital on Sunday evening and was undergoing assessments.

Watson is a pharmacist. He has been a member of the Illinois Senate since 1982.