September 24, 2021
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Pritzker signs revised legislative districts into law. Here's what that means. - Bloomington Pantagraph

Pritzker signed into law Friday a revised map of General Assembly boundaries
Gov. J.B. Pritzker leaves after speaking outside Walter R. Sundling Junior High School in Palatine on Tuesday. Pritzker has signed into law a revised map of General Assembly boundaries.

“These legislative maps align with the landmark Voting Rights Act and will help ensure Illinois’ diversity is reflected in the halls of government,” Pritzker said in a statement.

Republicans and several voting rights groups had asked the Democratic governor to veto the latest map plan, contending the vote by Democrats to approve it in an Aug. 31 special session came too quickly to adequately assess its effects on the state’s political, racial and ethnic makeup.

Republicans also said that by signing the revised measure, which was based on delayed federal census data that didn’t come out until mid-August, Pritzker reneged on his initial campaign vow not to approve partisan-drawn maps.

As Biden acknowledges difficulty in selling his economic agenda to the public, Pritzker is enlisted to help
As Biden acknowledges difficulty in selling his economic agenda to the public, Pritzker is enlisted to help

Pritzker in early June approved an earlier set of maps that were based on estimates from the federal Census Bureau’s American Community Survey rather than on specific population counts.

Republicans and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund filed federal lawsuits challenging that, and a federal court panel is considering whether to give the groups additional time to file new complaints challenging the latest map.

MALDEF said it is considering contesting the newest plan, contending it violates the federal Voting Rights Act and shortchanges representation from a growing Latino population.

Advocates for Black voting rights also contend the new map fails to maximize Black representation despite a decline in population over the last decade.

Democrats have said they believe their plan can withstand any challenge based on federal or state voting rights laws.

Democrats approved their original map based on survey results rather than await pandemic-delayed census results in order to beat a June 30 state constitutional deadline. Failure to have met that date would have resulted in a process that would have given Republicans a 50-50 chance of gaining control of the mapmaking process.

The census results were released on Aug. 12 and Democrats used those figures to try to remedy problems with their June map, which produced population variances of 30% — more than three times what the U.S. Supreme Court allows — between the most and least populated House districts.

Since Democrats control both chambers of the General Assembly as well as the governor’s office, there was no Republican input on the new map, as was the case when redistricting was done a decade ago. That map has led to a 73-45 Democratic majority over Republicans in the House and 41-18 in the Senate.

Republican state legislative leaders following the bill signing on Friday reiterated their criticism of Pritzker for failing to follow his original commitment to veto partisan-drawn maps.

“The governor has now twice chosen to actively betray the people he said he was elected to protect. This choice again proves he is more concerned with protecting the political elite than the people of Illinois,” Senate GOP leader Dan McConchie of Hawthorn Woods said.

House Republican leader Jim Durkin on Western Springs accused Pritzker of “retrograde amnesia” by signing the revised map and said the governor “has proven that he governs only for the Democratic political insiders and not for the people of Illinois.”

Tornadoes kill 13, hurt about 200
This is the front page of The Southern Illinoisan from May 30, 1982. A tornado ripped through the region the day before, killing 13 people and injuring more than 200.
Tornado hits near Williamson County Airport
The tornado touches down near Williamson County Airport on May 29, 1982.
Searching the rubble
Rescue workers sift through the rubble at the Shawnee Apartments on the west side of Marion on May 29, 1982. Workers were looking for a reported four missing.
The day after
A Shawnee Apartment Complex survivor looks through the ruins of his apartment for anything salvageable after a tornado hit May 29, 1982.
Tornado went through Energy as well
People look through the rubble of a home in Energy ruined by the tornado that hit May 29, 1982.
Widespread damage on Marion's west side
An aerial photo shows the damage done to the Town and Country Shopping Center on the west side of Marion after a tornado ripped through the region on May 29, 1982.
Perry County also saw damage
The May 29, 1982, tornado also hit Conant, a Perry County community about five miles southwest of Pinckneyville. The twister tore through this home, dumping a car into the basement.
Carterville from the air
An aerial photo shows Reynolds Market and a building burning in Carterville after a tornado rolled through the region on May 29, 1982.


source: https://pantagraph.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/pritzker-signs-revised-legislative-districts-into-law-heres-what-that-means/article_a2d9549c-ba33-5eb3-8b7b-6abcc6433d5f.html

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