Hidden in a cornfield in western Illinois last summer, 1,200 stalks of cannabis grew tall and bushy. But these plants won’t get anyone high.

They make up the first crop of hemp to be grown legally in Illinois in decades. And in the new year, the seeds from the plants will help sow the first modern widespread commercial hemp harvest.

The Chicago Board of Election Commissioners booted three mayoral candidates from the ballot Thursday, leaving 18 in the race to replace Rahm Emanuel — for now.

In agreeing with the findings of its hearing officers, the board decided Conrein Hykes Clark, Richard Mayers and Sandra Mallory won’t appear on the Feb. 26 ballot. Clark and Mayers didn’t meet the minimum requirement of 12,500 signatures and Mallory’s petition sheets were submitted in several bundles instead of the single, uniform package required by state election codes, the board said.

The line between embattled Chicago Ald. Edward Burke’s lucrative law practice and his public office is so thin that he has recused himself from hundreds of City Council votes that have sent millions of dollars in benefits to his private clients — from mega bond deals to tiny zoning changes.

Burke’s dual roles as the most powerful alderman on the council and high-end tax attorney for companies with business before the city have played out for decades. But the potential for conflicts of interest have taken on heightened interest after federal investigators raided Burke’s City Hall and ward offices in recent weeks.

A retiring Republican state House member and a former Democratic state senator are among the latest people hired by Gov.-elect J.B. Pritzker for his incoming administration.

David Harris will serve as director of the Illinois Department of Revenue, Pritzker’s transition team announced Thursday. Harris had been in the Illinois House since 2011, and also from 1983 to 1993. He had served as the Republican spokesman for the Appropriations-General Service and Revenue and Finance committees. Harris’ work experience also includes serving as senior vice president of the Illinois Hospital Association, Adjutant General for the State of Illinois, and Deputy Director and Chief of Staff of the U.S. State Department’s Iraq Reconstruction Management Office.