Don’t let Legislators pick their voters

  By Pat Brady, Chairman, Illinois Republican Party                                   

 The Illinois General Assembly recently passed a measure to purportedly make the redistricting process more transparent. Legislators are now required to hold public hearings, where interested voters can add their input to the map. Governor Pat Quinn hailed the hearings as a true effort at transparency.

However, no proposed map will be presented at the hearings as the new legislative districts are a secret kept within the walls of the Speaker Mike Madigan’s Office in Springfield. This begs the question: how can there be substantive dialogue about a map that is only known to a few Democrat insiders?

The reality is that the hearings are a sham. They are a tactical maneuver by Speaker Madigan to make the process appear open and transparent and create the impression that citizen input will have an impact in formulating the new legislative map. Nobody, including the leadership of the Republican Party will see the map until the 11th hour, and it is a certainty that it will be drawn reflecting the political interests of Speaker Madigan. The citizens of Illinois are going into the second decade of Speaker Madigan abusing the legislative redistricting process to further consolidate his stranglehold on power in Illinois. Not coincidentally, the State is on the brink of financial collapse.

The only one who can stop the charade and force real transparency is Governor Quinn. He can veto the map and demand real fairness and transparency. Governor Quinn has publicly stated that he wants a competitive political map. This will be his opportunity to demonstrate whether that is truly his belief or whether he wants to continue as a pawn for Speaker Madigan.

Editor’s Note: A list of redistricting hearing locations can be found at:
http://www.weareillinois.org/connect/newsDetail.aspx?newsID=11582