East Central Reporter

With Democrats in the Illinois General Assembly appearing to forge ahead with redistricting despite the lack of census data, Republicans have questioned whether Gov. J.B. Pritzker intends to live up to a campaign promise to veto any partisan-based plan. 

At the time, Pritzker said he was in favor of creating an independent redistricting commission through an amendment to the Illinois Constitution, but urged Republicans and Democrats to work together in the meantime, according to coverage by WCIA. 

“Many of our colleagues, including Governor Pritzker, have said in their own words that they would like an open and a transparent process,” state Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville) said during a news conference covered by WCIA. “One that’s going to stop politicians from picking their own voters.”

State Rep. Chris Miller (R-Oakland), who has been a longtime advocate for reforming the redistricting process, told the East Central Reporter that he never believed Pritzker’s promise to veto a partisan map.

“There was never any question that they were going to ram through a partisan map to allow the Democrats to preserve their majority in Illinois," the Oakland Republican said. "What incentive do they have to do anything differently?”

Miller said that he hears from constituents who are frustrated and feel powerless under the rule of a Democrat-majority. While Miller said he thinks Illinois Democrats love government, they are also bad at running it.

“They know the Democrats can pass any kind of map they want, and there is nothing the Republicans can do about it. They are tired of the one-party rule in Illinois. It has brought nothing but pain and misery to the entire state,” Miller said. “Illinois is woke and broke. The 110th District is not interested in woke politics, and they want our state to be fiscally solvent. They know with another 10 years of a Democrat majority, all we are going to get is more of the same, and our state will continue to be ruined.”