Chicago ? Lt. Gov. Patrick Quinn doesn’t like Gov. Rod Blagojevich, and the feeling is mutual.

The two haven’t spoken in more than a year. Quinn has called Blagojevich “petty and vindictive” for slashing money to the offices of state officials who’ve disagreed with him. He’s pushed for an amendment to allow the recall of constitutional officers, aimed at the governor.

And now, he says Blagojevich — arrested Tuesday on federal corruption charges — should step aside or be removed by the courts or lawmakers “for the good of the people.”

That would propel Quinn into Illinois’ highest office, and most political watchers say it couldn’t happen soon enough.

“Is Pat Quinn an improvement over Rod Blagojevich? Of course he is. That’s an understatement,” said Jay Stewart, executive director of Illinois’ Better Government Association. “But we’re not talking about succeeding a superstar governor. We’re talking about succeeding Rod Blagojevich.

“Anyone who can demonstrate any leadership and govern in a competent fashion is a massive upgrade over what we have now. I’m fully confident Pat Quinn can do that.”

Quinn has been known in state political circles for decades — starting as a reform-pushing gadfly. He helped create the consumer watchdog group Citizens Utility Board in 1983 to challenge the price of electricity and natural gas, and led a successful effort to cut the size of the Illinois House by one-third, to 118 members.

He served a term as state treasurer, from 1991-1995, and unsuccessfully challenged then-Secretary of State George Ryan in 1994. He returned to public office in 2002, as Blagojevich’s lieutenant governor, and was re-elected in 2006.

Along the way, he’s earned a reputation as a populist with a soft spot for military veterans. He fought for better health coverage, helped start a program to provide money to military families and has attended services for almost all of Illinois’ fallen soldiers.

But his effectiveness remains to be seen, said Kent Redfield, a political science professor at the University of Illinois in Springfield. Quinn has little executive experience and would inherit a mess — a $2 billion hole in the current state budget and an even bigger problem next year, he said.

What’s more, Quinn has never been totally embraced by politicians in either party because he has basically stuck to his outsider persona instead of building alliances.