BRAD WEISENSTEIN: Pritzker Says Gerrymander Can Be Gerry-More-Mandered If He Works At It

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s presidential aspirations are growing ever more evident as he inserts himself in the Texas gerrymandering brouhaha – and he’s no longer denying it.

He heralded many of the 57 Texas Democrats who fled to stop the state’s congressional maps from being redrawn to benefit Republicans, all the while deflecting the blatancy of Illinois’ gerrymandering and trivializing it as something drawn by “kindergarteners.”

Instead of advocating for taking mapmaking power away from state lawmakers, whether in Texas or Illinois, he’s embraced the sin: if he believes Illinois needs to counteract new Texas maps that put more Republicans in Congress, he’s considered making Illinois’ maps even more lopsided to send more Illinois Democrats to oppose President Trump.

Pritzker is telling voters that Illinois’ districts aren’t a right for them to express their views and pick their leaders. They’re a tool for political parties, or at least the political party with the most money and power at the moment. In his eyes: two wrongs may not make a right, but when those on the right do it then it’s wrong.

All of which provides a perfect illustration of why Illinois needs fair maps.

The congressional map Pritzker approved in 2021 yielded 14 districts dominated by Democrats and only three downstate districts held by Republicans – after forcing the downstate GOP to battle it out over the shrinking state’s lost seat.

And if there’s any doubt the maps were gerrymandered, just consider Pritzker’s own U.S. representative’s district. The 5th Illinois Congressional District held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley includes Pritzker’s mansion in the Gold Coast neighborhood on Lake Michigan, stretches to Chicago’s far western edge and O’Hare International Airport – where the Texas Democrats arrived Sunday night – and snakes north up to Barrington and other well-heeled suburbs.

Democratic mapmakers made Chicago-area congressional districts look like a writhing salamander bacchanal.

Illinois had 24 congressional seats from 1963 until 1983, with nine seats held by Democrats, eight by Republicans and seven switching between parties. As Illinois has lost population or failed to grow as fast as other states, that number has dwindled to 17.

Each time the state lawmakers have drawn maps, they’ve squeezed everyone outside Chicago into fewer districts. The 2024 presidential election saw 54.4% of the votes for the Democrat and 43.5% for the Republican, which would translate to at least seven congressional Republicans from Illinois had they not been gerrymandered into oblivion.

And just like the Texas Republicans now, Illinois Republicans were guilty of partisan gerrymandering when they held control of the state legislature.

When politicians draw maps to benefit their own parties and discourage competition, voters have fewer choices and stop showing up. It is the worst perversion of democracy.

Partisan maps are now seen as victors’ spoils to the point that Pritzker can capriciously threaten to use them to rub out Illinois’ three remaining congressional Republicans. While he may only be engaging in a word war with Trump, the level of disrespect and indifference it shows to Illinois voters is sad.

Where is the candidate who in 2018 repeatedly said he supported independent political maps, and who continued that pledge as a new governor to veto partisan legislative and congressional district maps?

It argues for voters taking that power away from all politicians.

Sixteen states now use independent map commissions. A poll in 2019 found 67% of Illinoisans in favor of an independent commission. Over 550,000 Illinois voters signed a petition asking for a vote on an independent commission in 2016, only to be thwarted by a lawsuit backed by convicted former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan.

Besides being fair, maps should be compact and group communities by their shared interests. It’s hard to fathom who you represent when Mt. Prospect is chopped in two and Lincoln’s Tomb – but not the rest of his Springfield cemetery – are in a district that stretches to the University of Illinois. Or the Gold Coast and O’Hare and Barrington are together.

Pritzker was elected governor in part because he said he was in favor of independent mapping. But since then, his actions showed otherwise.

Too bad the trail Pritzker chose to the White House is via Texas drama. The Cowboy Way would be to govern well and champion causes such as fair maps.

Brad Weisenstein is managing editor at the Illinois Policy institute.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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