Illinois Democrats unveil updated congressional cards
CHICAGO (AP) -Illinois Democrats have unveiled updated congressional cards proposing another Latino-skewed area in the Chicago area and could mean primary matchups for two Democratic established in the suburbs and in two other races with Republican established.
Democrats, who control the state government and redistrict in Illinois, released the revised maps Saturday. The cards come weeks after theirs first draft of borders which also aimed to give Democratic candidates an advantage in elections as the party fights to retain control of the US House in 2022.
State legislators are scheduled to meet in Springfield Tuesday and Wednesday to consider the maps drawn about each decade based on census data. Illinois, which currently has 18 members of the U.S. House, will lose a convention seat due to population loss.
Under the new maps, a proposed congressional district would connect Latino populations on the northwestern side of Chicago with the city’s West Side and western suburbs to another Latino-leaning district, in addition to that currently represented by the U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, a Chicago Democrat.
“The changes made to this updated congressional map will help ensure that the diversity of Illinois is reflected in Washington,” Senator Omar Aquino, a Chicago Democrat who chairs the Senate Redistricting Committee, said in a statement. “We appreciate the many advocacy groups and individuals who continue to lead our work with passion and commitment, as we continue to focus on creating a fair map that will give everyone an equal representation.”
The new proposed cards also mean some potential current matchups next year. That Illinois primary is in June.
First-time Representative Marie Newman of LaGrange and Representative Sean Casten of Downers Grove, both Democrats, would be in the same Chicago suburb. It is different from the first version of the cards where the six-year-old rep. Adam Kinzinger of Channahon, one of 10 Republicans who voted to accuse President Donald Trump, was drawn into Newman’s district. The revised maps would bring Kinzinger’s hometown into the same sprawling district as the four-year-old Republican rep. Darin LaHood from Dunlap, a strong Trump supporter.
The revised card also means a potential GOP primary matchup between the first period Rep. Mary Miller of Oakland and Repeat Rep. Mike Bost from Murphysboro.
Illinois Republican Party and advocacy groups have blasted the card making process as biased and lacks transparency. Democrats held several public hearings, but almost all were without draft cards for the public to comment on and were mostly attended only by lawmakers.
Illinois GOP spokesman Joe Hackler on Sunday called in recent cards an “even more aggressive” plan to protect Democrats.
“As we said for the latest version of the map, the Illinois Democrats, led by Gov. JB Pritzker, made it clear that they are willing to disconnect the franchisees in Illinois and break repeated campaign promises to bid (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and (Washington) DC brokers, “Hackler said in an email.
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