SPRINGFIELD - A fiercely debated concept to let voters recall elected officials won't be on November's ballot after the Illinois Senate effectively killed it on Thursday.

Republicans in the Senate led Thursday's efforts to change the state constitution to let voters oust officials from the governor to local mayors and judges.

But too few Democrats voted "yes," and the proposal came up three votes short on a 33-19 vote.

Controversy surrounding Gov. Rod Blagojevich often is cited as the reason surrounding recent pushes for the recall concept. But during debate, Republicans argued it was a general policy matter and should be an option for voters.

"This isn't necessarily all about the governor," said Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, R-Greenville.

State Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington Republican and possible candidate for governor in 2010, urged Blagojevich supporters to vote for recall even if they support the Chicago Democrat.

"That is still not a reason to vote against this constitutional amendment," Brady said.

Even if lawmakers approved, 60 percent of voters in November would have had to vote "yes" before the constitution would be amended. After that, recalling an official such as the governor would take thousands of petition signatures and another statewide vote.

State Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-East Moline, has been a frequent critic of Blagojevich and has called for him to resign, but he voted against the recall option.

Jacobs said a special election would cost millions of dollars to pull off.

"In my opinion, the notion of recall is better suited for cars than the governor of Illinois," he said.

Some Democrats, though, supported the recall.

"We need to hold elected officials at all levels to the highest ethical standards and demand they serve with integrity and honesty," said state Sen. Debbie Halvorson, D-Crete.

Voters in more than a dozen states have recall powers, and the process was last notably used in California in the election that led to Arnold Schwarzenegger becoming governor.

For Illinois, lawmakers had to approve it by Sunday if they wanted to place the recall question on the November ballot.

Some supporters had been heartened by an Illinois House decision to work through the weekend to meet the deadline. After the measure failed in the Senate, the House canceled its weekend schedule.

Earlier this month, the House approved a different version of the plan that allowed only for the recall of state-level officials such as the governor and lawmakers. The Senate declined to act on that proposal, instead adding local officials such as mayors on their own.

Mike Riopell can be reached at mike.riopell@lee.net or 789-0865.