Peoria Standard

Jim Rule, Chairman of the Tazewell County Republicans, said that Governor JB Pritzker's intention to gerrymander Illinois in response to Texas redistricting is a clear power grab prioritizing partisan interests over fair representation. Rule made his statement to the Peoria Standard.

"Governor Pritzker's threat to gerrymander Illinois in retaliation for Texas redistricting is an egregious abuse of power that betrays the trust of the people he was elected to serve," said Rule. "Instead of protecting fair representation, he's choosing to manipulate district lines for political gain. This move silences the voices of countless Illinois citizens, prioritizing partisan advantage over democratic integrity. For Illinois Democrats, playing political games clearly matters more than actually listening to the people they were elected to represent."

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Governor JB Pritzker suggested that Illinois and other Democratic-led states might consider their own redistricting efforts if Texas Republicans proceed with plans to redraw legislative maps to secure more GOP congressional seats. Speaking alongside visiting Texas Democrats on July 25, Pritzker warned that changes in one state could prompt similar actions in others, including Illinois. His comments have drawn criticism from Illinois Republicans, who accused him of hypocrisy due to his approval of heavily gerrymandered maps in 2021 that helped Democrats gain a congressional seat. Pritzker dismissed these claims by saying all options remain on the table.

The Princeton Gerrymandering Project's latest report on Illinois’s current congressional map scored the state's updated 2021 redistricting with an ‘F.’ This grade was attributed to a significant Democratic incumbent advantage, poor competitiveness compared to other potential maps, and poor geographic features.

Fox News reported that ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, Texas legislators will hold a special legislative session focused on redrawing congressional maps in the state. Supported by President Trump, this effort may strengthen the Republican party's narrow House majority by adjusting district lines and potentially adding up to five favorable seats. Conservative leaders cite constitutional concerns and Justice Department input on minority-represented districts as reasons for these changes. While Democrats criticize the move as politically motivated and plan to challenge it in court, Republicans view it as a strategy to fairly maintain control in a competitive cycle.

Rule, a resident of Morton, was first elected as Chairman of the Tazewell County Republicans in 2018. According to the organization’s website, he is "focused on boosting Republican voter turnout, growing the Party’s membership, and communicating the Party’s positions on issues that matter to Tazewell County voters."