Redistricting
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July 20, 2011
Illinois Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno was joined by House Republican Leader Tom Cross and concerned citizens on July 20 in filing a federal lawsuit to invalidate the 2011 General Assembly redistricting map. The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Illinois in an effort to force a redraw of legislative districts to protect the most sacred right in a Democratic society—the right to vote.
“As we now go to court to protect the voting rights of all citizens, I think it is important to remember how easily this could have been avoided,” Radogno said. “The majority party denied Illinois citizens the opportunity to vote for a constitutional amendment that would have taken the redistricting process out of the hands of politicians and given it to an independent body. Had that occurred, I am confident a fair map that meets the requirements of the Federal Voting Rights Act would have been adopted. Instead, Illinois citizens must turn to the courts to protect their right to have their votes count.”
The lawsuit has been filed against the State Board of Elections. Specifically the suit makes the following allegations against the map passed by Democratic majorities and signed by the Governor:
- 1. The map violates the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 because African Americans and Latinos have not been provided a “fair opportunity” to participate in the political process.
- 2. The process by which the map was approved violates the Illinois Constitution because the map was not made available to the public or the legislature for a sufficient amount of time for review.
- 3. The map violates the 1st Amendment to the United States Constitution because it dilutes the voting power of Republican voters throughout the state.
- 4. The map violates the compactness requirement of the Illinois Constitution and is less compact than the previous map and the Fair Map put forward as an alternative.
“The Democrats passed a map this session that we believe is in direct violation of the Federal Voting Rights Act and some of our most basic rights under the constitution,” said Leader Cross. “They should be ashamed of themselves. We are optimistic that the court will agree with us and will help give our residents a Fair Map that accurately reflects our population, especially our growing Latino population.”
In the coming months, if the plaintiffs are successful, the court could direct the General Assembly to redraw the district boundaries of all or parts of the state within a specific deadline. The court could also direct a “Special Master” to redraw the lines, or it could direct a Legislative Redistricting Commission, as provided by our Constitution, to draw the boundaries with equal appointments made by the four legislative leaders. If the Commission cannot agree, a tiebreaker’s name would be drawn from a hat.
“For years, we have pushed for redistricting reform that would have created a Fair Map, only to be blocked by the Democrats,” added Cross and Radogno. “It is disappointing that the Democrats passed and signed a map that violates federal law and the constitution. We must stand up for the residents of our state and fight for a Fair Map that will be in place for the next decade.”
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May 28, 2011
Within 24 hours Democrat lawmakers filed and rushed through a legislative boundary map that places political advantage before the interests of the public.
Though the once-in-a-decade process establishes legislative boundaries that the people of Illinois will have to abide by for the next 10 years, the Democrat majority gave the people of this state only 24 hours to review the map that was jammed through the General Assembly on May 27.
“Illinois’ redistricting process is rotten to the core,” said State Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) during debate.
Senate Bill 1177 was approved on a strictly partisan roll-call. Procedural maneuvers made it impossible for any member of the Senate of either party to offer amendments, despite a much better option proposed May 26 by Senate and House Republicans.
The Fair Map plan offered by the Republican lawmakers was drawn without consideration of incumbency, with a primary focus on the Federal Voting Rights Act, the Illinois Voting Rights Act, the United State’s Constitution and the Illinois Constitution.
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Read more...
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May 26, 2011
Illinois House and Senate Republicans have released a Fair Map legislative redistricting proposal, drawn without consideration of incumbency.
The statewide legislative map complies with the Federal Voting Rights Act, the Illinois Voting Rights Act, the United State's Constitution and the Illinois Constitution. It creates districts that are equal in population, compact, contiguous and maintain county and municipal boundaries without first considering politicians' addresses or election data.
The Fair Map creates nine Latino House districts with voting age populations (VAP) of 60 percent or more. That's in sharp contrast to the partisan map unveiled by Democrats recently that created only four districts with VAPs of 60 percent or more.
Compared to the Democrats' map, the Fair Map plan creates two additional Latino districts and enhances and equalizes Latino voters in other districts. At the same time, it does not retrogress African-American districts. In fact, it creates two more majority African-American districts than the proposed Democrat map.
The changes were drafted to strengthen Latino representation, while protecting the rights of African-Americans. They incorporate recommendations of Latino, African-American and neighborhood groups and strictly comply with the Federal Voting Rights Act.
(Click here to go to the Senate's interactive map page) House Districts and maps can be found here.
“Our goal throughout this process has been a Fair Map that complies with the Illinois Constitution and the applicable laws, including the federal Voting Rights Act,” Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno said. “Community organizations and citizens throughout the state have joined us in demanding a legislative district map that complies with the principles of Fair Map – which would lead to fair representation, competitive elections and greater accountability. We are providing that Fair Map."
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May 24, 2011
House and Senate lawmakers came together May 24 to accept public testimony on the recently released legislative redistricting maps. Though it’s unknown when the chambers will vote on the redistricting proposals, both House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie and Senate Redistricting Chairman Kwame Raoul have said it will not be on May 24. However, few legislative observers expect that map to be the one actually implemented.
Echoing previous redistricting hearings, most witnesses spoke to the impact the redistricting process would have on the voting rights of Illinois’ racial and ethnic minorities. Representatives from a number of Latino organizations testified that there are not enough Hispanic districts included in the maps pending the General Assembly, and contended many Latino communities will be fractured and diluted by the proposed maps thereby denying them the opportunity to elect the candidate of their choice.
Former Chicago City Clerk and senator Miguel del Valle, testified before his friends and past colleagues that the proposals worries him, noting that the Latino community represents special circumstances that must be taken into consideration. Del Valle said that when drawing districts in these areas lawmakers must include a larger percentage of the Latino voting age population. Jocelyn Woodards from the Illinois Campaign for Accountable Redistricting urged lawmakers to give the public a realistic opportunity to review and analyze the maps. She asked for two weeks of time to review the redistricting data and the map itself.
Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) emphasized that the Legislature does not have to pass a map by May 31. He pointed out that May 31 is the deadline for passage with a simple majority vote. June 30 is actually the constitutional deadline for lawmakers to approve a redistricting proposal.
To defend their map, Democrats brought in $400-per-hour consultant, Allan Lichtman to testify in favor of the redistricting plan. Despite intense questioning from Republicans on the panel, Lichtman refused to be pinned down on questions about the proportion of Latino or African-American voters needed in a district to assure that minority voters can elect the candidate of their choice. Lichtman is an instructor at American University in Washington,D.C. and a former Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate. |
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