Peoria Standard

Republican state Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) is hoping Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s handling of the state’s map redistricting has finally allowed voters to see what he views as the real Pritzker.

“I think the most important development that’s occurred in recent days is the ruling by the federal courts that the spring maps deemed fair by Gov. Pritzker were in fact unconstitutional,” Barickman said at a recent news conference. “The courts determined very clearly that the spring maps violated the equal protection clause of the United States Constitution. The ruling made it clear what many of us have been saying for months.”

In a suit filed in federal court, Republican leaders charged residents were “robbed” of a fair and transparent process for creating maps that will be used for elections over the next decade. Pritzker signed off on the Democratic-sponsored legislation in early June, despite pledging as a candidate that he would veto any maps drawn by politicians or along partisan lines.

Filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, GOP House and Senate minority leaders Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Chicago) and Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Lake Zurich) named Pritzker, House Speaker Emanuel Chris Welch (D-Westchester), Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) and state board of elections officials as defendants. Part of the suit also sought to have a bipartisan redistricting commission appointed, an arrangement Pritzker expressed support for while a candidate in 2018.  

“I think it's important to remember that the governor said on this issue and others that he would be different and would stand up for the people of this state against the political class who were ruling against the people of this state,” Barickman said. “He went so far as to promise the voters that he would veto partisan drawing maps and that again he would stand up for the little guy. He broke his promise not just once this spring, he broke it again when the Democrats did the redo and it appears that he’s in place to break his promise yet again a third time with the Congressional maps.”

A three-judge federal court panel has now set the week of Dec. 6 as the period when it will hear the three consolidated cases challenging the new legislative districts. During a status conference held by teleconference earlier this month, presiding U.S. District Judge Robert M. Dow Jr., stipulated that the hearing will most likely be held in-person in the ceremonial courtroom of the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago.

State lawmakers officially approved the new maps during a special session in August following the delayed release of detailed 2020 U.S Census data. Roughly a month later, Pritzker signed the maps that establish boundaries for all 118 districts in the House and 59 districts in the Senate into law.

Each of the filings argues that the new maps effectively serve to dilute the voting power of concentrated areas of minority voters that typically tend to vote as a bloc, thereby robbing them of their right to cast ballots in favor of preferred candidates.

Attorneys for each of the plaintiffs said they only want to focus on certain contested districts including the Metro East region for the NAACP, portions of Cook County for MALDEF, and both the Metro East and Chicago areas for the Republican plaintiffs.

“What's important is what was revealed just in the last several days which is that the governor is not a bystander in this map-making process,” Barickman said. “He's inserted himself as an active participant in the map-making process, again contrary to his campaign pledge and his stated desire that he would support something that's independent.”