SPRINGFIELD, IL – State Representative Dave Severin (R-Benton) issued the following statement after Illinois House Democrats passed House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 28 (HJRCA 28), a Democratic led proposal to change how legislative maps are drawn in Illinois:
“HJRCA 28 is not about fairness or reform—it is about protecting political power. For years, Illinois has required legislative districts to be compact, contiguous, and equal in population. This proposal weakens those standards and replaces them with a subjective framework that opens the door to more gerrymandering.
Illinois already has some of the worst legislative maps in the country. The Princeton Gerrymandering Project gave our maps an ‘F,’ and Common Cause Illinois has also cited serious concerns about transparency and public input. Instead of fixing those problems, Democrats are doubling down.
Governor JB Pritzker once promised to support fair maps and veto partisan proposals. When given the chance, he broke that promise and signed off on unfair maps. Now, we are seeing more of the same.
Voters should choose their representatives—not the other way around. That is why House Republicans have supported a better approach through HJRCA 5, which would create a bipartisan commission to draw fair and transparent maps. Unfortunately, that proposal continues to be ignored.
The people of Illinois deserve a redistricting process they can trust. HJRCA 28 moves us further away from that goal and reinforces a system where politicians pick their voters instead of voters picking their leaders.”