Jan 30, 2025 Story by: Editor
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The Republican leader of the Illinois House, joined by five voters, has filed a lawsuit urging the state Supreme Court to invalidate the state’s legislative district map, arguing that it was drawn unfairly to benefit Democrats.
The lawsuit, which challenges the 2021 redistricting plan, raises concerns over the compactness of districts, pointing to their irregular shapes, which previously attracted criticism on a national level. It also invokes the state constitution’s guarantee of “free and equal” elections.
“Drawn by the party in power, these maps are designed to entrench Illinois Democrats in control while silencing the voices of voters who support the minority party,” said Republican Rep. Tony McCombie of Savanna. “The result? Rigged outcomes in general elections.”
Illinois’ redistricting process has historically resulted in deadlock, leading to a tie-breaking mechanism where a name is drawn from a hat to determine which party controls the mapmaking. Over the past three decades, Democrats have consistently been chosen to lead the process following each U.S. Census.
Efforts to reform the system have previously faced legal obstacles. In 2016, nearly 600,000 voters signed petitions supporting a ballot initiative to transfer mapmaking authority to an independent commission, but the state Supreme Court ruled the proposal unconstitutional. On Tuesday, January 28, Republican Rep. Ryan Spain introduced a constitutional amendment to establish a nonpartisan commission for redistricting.
Democrats currently dominate the Illinois General Assembly, holding 78 of 118 seats in the House and 40 of 59 in the Senate. In Congress, the Democratic Party holds a significant advantage, controlling 14 of the state’s 17 U.S. House seats, in addition to both U.S. Senate positions.
The lawsuit, filed by McCombie and voters from districts they claim are severely gerrymandered, seeks the appointment of a special master by the state Supreme Court to draft a new map.
Although Democrats hold a 5-2 majority on the high court, Republicans remain optimistic that the justices will take up the case and provide a fair ruling.
Rep. Dan Ugaste, a longtime election reform advocate and Republican from Geneva, expressed hope that changes would be implemented before the 2026 candidate petition period begins in December.
Ugaste highlighted disparities in past election results, noting that in 2022, Democratic candidates secured 50% of the total votes statewide but won 66% of legislative seats. Additionally, many districts heavily favor one party, resulting in little to no competition.
“The volume of uncontested races means that almost half of the state representatives will represent Illinoisans not because they were elected and had to present their policy ideas to voters, but only because they submitted the right paperwork to the state Board of Elections,” Ugaste said.
When asked whether Republicans would gain control of the General Assembly under an independent redistricting process, Spain acknowledged the possibility but emphasized that fairness was the primary concern.
“But that’s not really the point. Even if there was no change to the partisan allocation here in the Illinois House, things are not working,” Spain said. “We are not empowering voters to make decisions on what their government should look like and how it works. So something has to change.” Source: MSN
