State Representative Wayne Rosenthal (IL) | Representative Wayne A Rosenthal (R) 108th District
State Representative Wayne Rosenthal (IL) | Representative Wayne A Rosenthal (R) 108th District
On Tuesday, House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, alongside State Representatives Ryan Spain and Dan Ugaste, held a press conference at the State Capitol to announce a lawsuit aimed at addressing legislative gerrymandering in Illinois. McCombie filed the lawsuit with the Illinois Supreme Court, seeking to have the current electoral map declared unconstitutional and requesting a special master to draft a new redistricting plan.
State Representative Wayne Rosenthal stated: “Voters have the right for their voices to be heard, but the current legislative map suppresses constituents from electing candidates they support in Illinois.”
The U.S. Supreme Court has tasked states with resolving issues of extreme partisan gerrymandering. Illinois may follow other states like Pennsylvania and North Carolina that have had similar redistricting plans overturned due to constitutional concerns.
McCombie's lawsuit challenges two aspects of the 2021 maps: district compactness and partisan gerrymandering. She argued that "Illinois’ State House District Maps are the byproduct of extreme partisan gerrymandering," designed to maintain Democratic control and limit minority party voters' influence.
In addition to legal action, Ryan Spain introduced House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 05 (HJRCA05) in an effort to establish a Fair Map Amendment. Spain criticized Speaker Chris Welch's leadership, stating: “Instead of a promised New Day by Speaker Chris Welch, we have instead seen Democrats opposing democracy through a multitude of efforts, but the most egregious remains the map.”
Dan Ugaste highlighted how recent elections underscored successful partisan gerrymandering effects: “Of the 2024 Illinois House elections, Democratic candidates won 55% of the statewide vote. But Democratic candidates won a super-majority of seats (78 of 118, or 66.1%).”
Dr. Jowei Chen from the University of Michigan provided expert research supporting this complaint. Ugaste emphasized his commitment to fair maps and ethics reform: “I support expanding recall elections for all elected officials... Voters across our state deserve to be heard.”
While HJRCA05 is under consideration in the Illinois House, details about today's filed complaint are available online at RedoRemap.com.
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