Will County Gazette

Another legislative session is winding down, and along with it another attempt by lawmakers to end the decades-long history of gerrymandering in Illinois. 

Multiple Republican legislators have shared their frustration with Gov. J.B. Pritzker and his broken campaign promise to veto any map made by politicians this year, including state Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs), who challenged the governor to remember the weight of his words in a recent news conference.

"I think it's important to remind everyone here in Springfield that words matter and your commitments mean something," Durkin said. "When someone gives you their word, particularly in this building, you should expect them to live up to it. When someone is placed in a position of leadership, they are responsible for the actions that happen under their watch."

Despite pledging that he would veto any legislator-made maps during his campaign, he recently went back on his promise and changed course to say he favors a 2018 constitutional amendment that was removed from the ballot, according to The News-Gazette.

Durkin said that Pritzker is ignoring the issues that Illinois voters deem most important. 

"It was just a few years ago that 600,000 Illinoisans signed a petition to create an independent map, for that question to be placed on the ballot," Durkin said. "However, today, Democrats are drawing a partisan map behind closed doors, created by legislators, political party leaders, their staff and allies."

Gerrymandering has had very real consequences for the Prairie State, including the 30-plus-year reign of former House Speaker Mike Madigan, who resigned after bribery allegations surfaced. Despite this, Democrats remain lukewarm to independently drawn maps. 

"There is no real input from the public.There is no transparency," Durkin continued. "There isn’t even a real idea of what phony data that they are trying to use in order to pass partisan maps."

The politically-driven maps have been said to be stealing the voices of minority populations as well, according to Prairie State Wire. The IL NAACP president recently spoke out against maps that create advantageous scenarios for politicians at the cost of minority representation. 

Durkin said he just wants Democrats to live up to their longtime pledge of removing remapping from the statehouse. 

"The governor can’t just stick his head in the sand and say it’s out of his hands," the representative said. "He is the leader of their party. Gov. Pritzker has done nothing to live up to his commitments from the campaign and the words he used to lure voters have been nothing but a hollow promise."