Kankakee Times

State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) is still pressing for the one thing he argues will bring balance and fairness to Illinois.

“We submitted a proposal that fixes specific constitutional problems with the current map that had only served to keep entrenched incumbents in power,” Barickman said in a news release. “Democrats led by Gov. Pritzker had only one thing in mind when drawing their map – protecting politicians at the expense of the people.”

With critics of the maps recently appearing in federal court to force the issue, Barickman and his colleagues have proposed legislation designed to be home to more districts with minority voting-age populations above 50% and better opportunities for voters. The measure also pushes for increases in Latino Citizen Voting Age Population (CVAP) House and Senate districts and an additional CVAP African American House District in the Metro East.

“During depositions, witnesses confirmed under oath that the maps passed by the Democrats and signed by Gov. Pritzker protected incumbents by having sitting politicians draw their own districts,” Barickman said. “As noted in court filings, Democratic lawmakers were drawing their own districts without even using data on minority populations.”

The latest legal action comes on the heels of a three-judge panel ruling the initial maps drawn by Democrats were unconstitutional based on their violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

As part of the ruling, the panel asserted “The General Assembly may not dilute a large percentage of voters to advance a preferred political outcome.”

The panel that includes U.S. District Judge Robert M. Dow Jr., U.S. District Judge Jon DeGuilio, and Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Michael B. Brennan is now set to hear a three-case lawsuit opposing the maps on Dec. 6.

Earlier this year, Barickman declared himself “invigorated” by the federal court panel's verdict rendering the state's redistricting maps "unconstitutional" since they were drawn before official data from the U.S. Census Bureau had been released.

"Governor J.B. Pritzker betrayed the people of Illinois when he broke his campaign promise and attempted to legitimize his party's blatant grab for power," Barickman said in the statement on Oct.19. "Pritzker's actions harmed countless Illinoisans, with the court acknowledging that states 'do not receive a blank check to dilute votes.'"