Illinois Fair Map Amendment

Chicago Tribune: Citizens First?

ilfairmap — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 16:25:35 +0000

April 12, 2010

Editorial

On Monday, the Illinois Senate’s Redistricting Committee will consider competing proposals to change the way the state’s legislative maps are drawn. If things go as they usually do, the Democratic measure will be voted out of committee and the Republican measure will go nowhere.

And that, dear citizen, is an apt illustration of what’s wrong with the Democrats’ redistricting proposal.

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Chicago Sun-Times: Fair Map Amendment a good plan for Illinois

ilfairmap — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 19:21:41 +0000

April 7, 2010

Commentary

From the days of ancient explorers, we’ve known that if you rely on the wrong mapmaker, you probably won’t get where you want to go.

Illinois soon will be drawing a new map of its legislative districts. And, just like those early explorers, if we pick the wrong mapmaker, we won’t like where we wind up.

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Chicago Tribune Editorial: Take away the pen

ilfairmap — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 15:24:21 +0000

Fair Map amendment takes redistricting process away from legislators

March 14, 2010

In California, the land of government-by-initiative, more than 30,000 citizens are vying for 14 spots on a commission that will redraw the state’s legislative boundaries after the 2010 U.S. Census.

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Quad-City Times: Slay Illinois’ legislative district monsters

ilfairmap — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:20:46 +0000

March 6, 2010

By The Times Editorial Board

Illinois’ contorted legislative districts defy logic. They make sense only for those with a detailed understanding of the political makeup of each county.

If everyone understood that, these twisted districts would be revealed as blatant attempts to protect partisan incumbents.

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WSIL-TV News: Wanting Reform in Redistricting

ilfairmap — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:01:45 +0000

March 1, 2010

By Rachel Gartner

JACKSON COUNTY– Now that the 2010 census is underway, redistricting will soon follow. That’s the once-every-ten-years process by which lawmakers re-draw legislative maps. There are groups that want to see that process changed and they met Friday in Carbondale.

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Southtown Star: Congress not part of Fair Map Campaign

ilfairmap — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:25:50 +0000

February 24, 2010

BY PHIL KADNER

A citizens initiative to amend the Illinois Constitution and change the way that legislative districts are drawn would not effect congressional districts.

Apparently, only state Senate and House districts would be impacted.

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Naperville Sun: Local reps look to reform redistricting

ilfairmap — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:53:57 +0000

February 23, 2010

By JENETTE STURGES

Salamander-shaped, politically gerrymandered districts may go the way of the dinosaur in Illinois if two Naperville-area representatives in the Illinois General Assembly have their say.

Republicans Michael Connelly and Darlene Senger spoke Monday morning to the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce to garner support and signatures for the Fair Map Amendment.

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Murphysboro American: Republican leaders propose putting redistricting on ballot

ilfairmap — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:30:32 +0000

Feb 22, 2010

By John Guidroz GateHouse News Service

Murphysboro, Ill. -

Top Republicans in the legislature say it’s time to overhaul the system for setting up lawmakers’ districts – the same system that’s been pretty good to Democrats who now will decide whether the rewrite goes anywhere.

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Quad Cities Dispatch Argus: Signatures wanted: Illinois citizens drive to fix finagled Congressional districts

ilfairmap — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:27:40 +0000

Feb. 22, 2010

By Brandy Donaldson

Illinois’ 17th Congressional District, which includes the quad-Cities area, was designed 10 years ago to elect Democratic candidates to the U.S. Congress, while its neighboring districts, the 18th and 19th, were finagled during redistricting to be Republican.

The 17th zigzags to cover all or part of 21 counties, zigging here to avoid Republican areas and zagging there to include Democrats.

Rockford Register Star: Help state change the way it draws political maps

ilfairmap — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:19:14 +0000

Feb. 20, 2010

By RRSTAR.COM EDITORIAL

If you looked at a map of Illinois’ legislative districts, you’d wonder, “How the heck did they come up with that?”

The districts look more like a Rorschach test — a bunch of ink blots — than a system of deciding who represents whom. That’s because drawing those maps is done in the interests of the political parties and not in the interests of the public.

You can help change that.

The League of Women Voters of Illinois is championing the Fair Map Amendment, a measure that would change Illinois’ redistricting process. The effort is supported by the Better Government Association, the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, Illinois Chamber of Commerce, Illinois Farm Bureau and other good-government groups.

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