News: House Democratic leaders have shifted their proposed new Illinois congressional map as they angle for a mid-decade redraw in the Land of Lincoln.
The latest configuration would target GOP Rep. Darin LaHood in the northwestern region rather than GOP Rep. Mary Miller in the center of the state, according to multiple sources close to the process. The new map would likely elect 15 Democrats and two Republicans.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is driving this push, working quickly to bring the congressional delegation on board and convince state legislative leaders to move the map through in Springfield. Jeffries and his team worked over the weekend to nudge both groups along, especially Black lawmakers.
House Democrats are expected to send a proposed map to the leaders in the General Assembly. Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch and state Senate President Don Harmon — both longtime Democratic public officials — are the leaders in their respective chambers.
Roadblocks. We’ve written at length about the difficulties in this process. The Illinois delegation has two primary concerns: 1) diluting Black representation and 2) making blue seats too purple by stretching Democratic voters too thin. Jeffries’ latest attempt to shift the configuration of the new map could assuage some of these fears.
Democrats initially were told the target would be Miller, a controversial member elected in 2020. Targeting LaHood — the son of a former member who first won his seat in 2015 — means many of the Chicago-area districts would need to stretch more west than south.
But the hardest part of all this likely lies in Springfield, where there’s little enthusiasm for this redistricting push. Illinois’ filing deadline is in two weeks and candidates are already circulating petitions.
The state legislature would have to move very fast on the new map or shift the date of its primaries next year. Legislators will be in a veto session next week. Jeffries has been trying to influence this, but Illinois Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker may have more sway. Pritzker sidestepped a question Monday on whether the legislature should redraw the map.
