GOP pushes redistricting plan

Kurt Erickson
February 19, 2010

Republicans want commission to draw districts after censuses.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Top Illinois Republicans and the League of Women Voters unveiled a plan Thursday aimed at taking away the power of Illinois lawmakers to draw the boundaries of their own districts.

House Minority Leader Tom Cross and Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno will pursue a rewrite of the state's redistricting process on two tracks: One in the Legislature and one via a citizen initiative.

In each case, the goal is to put a constitutional amendment on the November general election ballot that could significantly change how the state's political borders are drawn.

"We are proposing to take the politics out of the redistricting process and let voters choose their elected representatives," Radogno said.

The proposal is the latest to surface in the once-per-decade battle to divide the state into political districts.

Following each national census, the political map is supposed to be adjusted to make sure each of the state's Senate and House districts are equal in population.

Under the current system, legislators have a say in how the boundaries of their own districts are set -- a situation some say leads to politicians choosing their voters, rather than voters choosing who represents them in Springfield and in Washington, D.C.

State Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon, said the final product must not allow incumbent legislators to play a role in drawing the map.

"Any proposal that continues to have lawmakers draw their own districts is not reform," Righter said.

Under the proposed amendment, the redistricting process would be overseen by an independent, bipartisan commission. It also would require boundaries to follow geographical and municipal boundaries to the maximum extent possible.

Republicans are hoping to put the measure on the ballot through a vote of the House and Senate, rather than relying on a citizen's petition initiative, which would require the collection of 280,000 signatures across the state.

But, Democrats, who control state government, signaled Thursday the legislative approach backed by the GOP would be blocked.

State Sen. Kwame Raoul, D-Chicago, who chaired a Senate redistricting commission that met last year, said Democrats will unveil their redistricting blueprint next week.

"The way we do things now needs reform," Raoul said.

State Rep. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, said Republicans plan to push for a vote on the amendment in the House.

"The residents are demanding it," Rose said. "The political reality is that the Democrats in control don't want it."

While the two parties wrestle over the issue, the League of Women Voters, the Illinois Farm Bureau and the Illinois Chamber of Commerce are moving forward with the petition drive.

They've created a Web site -- www.ilfairmap.com -- and are circulating petitions in order to collect signatures from 280,000 registered voters by April.