SPRINGFIELD – Eleven counties will join the Fifth Judicial District’s existing 37 southernmost, if legislators adopt a map that Democratic leaders introduced on May 25.
Illinois has 102 counties.
The district would run 260 miles from Cairo to Hoopeston, and would absorb Decatur but wouldn’t capture the Capitol.
The Fifth Judicial District has been trending Republican since 2004 when voters elected Justice Lloyd Karmeier. He was retained in 2014 and retired last year, opening the way for Republican David Overstreet to win easily over Democrat Judy Cates in the 2020 general election.
Since Karmeier’s election, the Fifth District Appellate Court in Mt. Vernon has turned from a Democratic majority to a solid 5-2 Republican majority.
The proposed map attempts to catch up with 58 years of population changes so profound that five persons live in the Second District for every two in the Fifth District.
Opponents, including Illinois Civil Justice League and the Illinois Republican Party, say the real reason for the remap is reaction to Democrats’ 2020 loss in the Third Judicial District when voters soundly defeated Justice Thomas Kilbride’s retention bid.
“It is clear to me that the Democrats have initiated this first in 50-year judicial remap in reaction to their Third District retention loss in 2020 and concern that they could lose that seat to the Republicans in 2022,” said ICJL president John Pastuovic.
“For example, when looking at party identification voting data, the current Third District gives Republicans about a 55 to 45 percent advantage, while the new map gives the Republicans a slight 51 to 49 percent advantage.”
Illinois Republican spokesman Joe Hackler called the map an example of the lengths the political class will go to keep control.
“For the first time in the state’s history, a Supreme Court justice (Kilbride) was removed from the court because of his ties to the Democrat machine.”
Rep. Lisa Hernandez of Cicero leads the House redistricting committee and Sen. Omar Aquino of Chicago leads the Senate redistricting committee.