* Tribune…

In January, a record number of Democrats are set to be sworn in as state representatives in the Illinois House, giving Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch a supermajority not even enjoyed by his notorious predecessor and claiming its first political victim — now-outgoing House Minority Leader Jim Durkin.

Aided by a newly drawn map of district boundaries, Welch’s Democrats say they racked up wins in as many as 77, and possibly 78, of the House’s 118 seats. That would best the modern high-water mark of 74 seats set in 2018 by Democrats led at the time by now-indicted ex-Speaker Michael Madigan, the longest-serving state House speaker in American history. […]

The final tally will likely reduce Harmon’s current Democratic majority from 41 of 59 senators to about 39 or 40, depending on when results are confirmed over the coming days. Democrats will easily exceed the 71 votes needed to control a supermajority in the House and the 36 in the Senate to exercise on issues ranging from borrowing money to overriding a veto to putting proposed constitutional amendments before voters.

Meanwhile, the AP sticks to its outdated numbers and spreads misinformation…

According to vote tabulations by The Associated Press, by Wednesday afternoon, House Democrats had picked up one seat, matching their 2021-22 total of 74 votes

As another example, on election night, the AP was only reporting suburban Cook County numbers in Sen. Bill Cunningham’s race. They finally incorporated the Chicago results, but have since appear to have stopped counting. The AP claims that with “99% of precincts reporting,” Cunningham (D-Chicago) leads Christine Shanahan McGovern 53-47. He’s actually ahead 59-41.

If you’re gonna set yourself up as the ultimate factual authority, then, please, put the work in, or at least run a disclaimer.

* Yep…

With all precincts reporting, embattled Democratic Illinois state senator Michael Hastings @HastingsforIL now has a 341 lead over his Republican challenger. Looks like Hastings will win, assuming mail will trend Democratic. #twill @dmihalopoulos @MaryAnnAhernNBC @capitolfax pic.twitter.com/F3bcVSfTgI

— Frank Calabrese (@FrankCalabrese) November 9, 2022

The AP still has Sheehan ahead by 68 votes.

* Speaking of mail, what DeVore fails to mention is that Donald Trump has actively discouraged mail-in ballots for years. The Illinois Republican Party pioneered mail-in voting years ago. It was jettisoned because rank-and-file voters now hate it. It’s truly hurting their party’s candidates and they need to get over themselves…

Also, with or without mail-in ballots, DeVore woulda got clobbered. I mean, c’mon.

* Politico on the scramble to replace retiring House GOP Leader Jim Durkin…

State Rep. Tim Ozinga, who was elected in 2020 and has been angling for the position for months, has already caused concern among some Republicans. Ozinga committed to helping the House Republican Majority)this cycle as finance chair and said he would personally give $2 million to the fund, according to a person familiar with the arrangement.

But Ozinga didn’t end up committing anything after all. He gave more to the Senate Republicans than he did to the House Republicans.

Ozinga, whose family runs a well-known concrete company, sat on the sidelines at a time when Republican candidates could have used the financial help. But he did create something he calls the “Big Tent Coalition,” which provides candidates with services on the campaign trail. Ozinga charged a 15 percent fee for the work.

The day before the election, Ozinga also deposited $1 million into his political account, maybe in an effort to show members he has money to share. But some saw it as an insult because it wasn’t used to help any candidates win office.

Another potential candidate for GOP House leader is state Rep. Martin McLaughin. He’s also been in the House since 2020 and before that was a Barrington Village president. Away from his public job, he runs a pension firm, a position that could put him under some scrutiny. He has opposed pension consolidation legislation and has employed a lobbyist in Springfield for his business in order to influence legislation for his firm’s benefit.

Yikes.

* Golden Horsehoe winner Candy Dogood in comments…

Speaking of 2024 speculation, it’d be nice if reporters would recognize that JB cannot state his intention to run for president without triggering an immediate requirement to file with the FEC and to comply with quite a few laws regarding what he can do, how he can do it, and how he spends money.

So, he can’t answer in the affirmative. There’s also no legal difference between an “exploratory committee” and a regular presidential campaign committee, they just call it exploratory so it’s less embarrassing when the candidate decides not to run.

JB benefits from others talking about the possibility both in Illinois and nationally, but it’s not hard hitting journalism to ask him a question that he can’t legally answer in the affirmative at this time.

If he is ever planning on running for President a random reporter at a political event is not getting the scoop by pressing him on the issue and a state governor giving a non answer about running for president isn’t news and isn’t important. It’s also lazy to keep asking him about it.

If a journalist wants to have fun with this topic, the questions should tie back into his administration, “Do you think that the staffing difficulties and contempt of court charges at your Department of Children and Family services could detract from your national image if it was reported on nationwide?”

Asking him a yes or no question solely about running for president is a waste of everyone’s time.

It is also very unlikely that Biden would ditch his VP, and if Biden decides not to run we probably won’t hear about that affirmatively for at least another 12 months.

The Governor has a lot that needs to he addressed that his administration is directly responsible for, let’s press him on those issues and why they seem to be lingering with no one being held accountable for the failure to address them.

* Last February, Lake County Clerk Robin O’Connor, elected four years ago as a Democrat, announced she was switching parties to run as a Republican. She’s losing 54-46 to Democrat Anthony Vega. All countywide Democrats are winning. And only 5 of 19 seemingly victorious county board candidates are Republicans. JB Pritzker won the county with 51 percent in 2018. He’s winning the county this year with 59 percent.

Pritzker won DuPage County four years ago by two points, with 48 percent. He’s winning it this year by 15 points, 56-41.

Pritzker lost McHenry County four years ago by 10 points and he’s cutting his losing margin this year in half.

One potential kinda/sorta bright spot for Bailey is Will County, which Pritzker won 50-44 four years ago. Pritzker’s winning by a lesser amount so far this year, 50-47.

* Sen. Darren Bailey is currently leading in one Chicago ward, the 41st, way up on the city’s Northwest Side. The ward is the home to a lot of first responders. But the lead is small, 9,022-8,964, so that could get wiped out when more mail-in/provisional ballots are counted. Pritzker won the 41st Ward four years ago 51-43.

* Isabel’s roundup…

* ADDED: Rep. Theresa Mah | Asian Americans are making a big mark in Illinois politics: With these numbers, Asian Americans come closer to equitable representation for the state’s fastest-growing population. We’ll be able to advocate for our communities so that it will not be possible to make policies “about us without us” and we will more effectively fight for resources our constituents need.

* NBC 5 | ‘Ok Then’: Pritzker Details What Was Said in His Election Night Call With Bailey: “I got on the phone… I said, ‘Senator Bailey,’ he said, ‘Governor, I want to congratulate you.’ And I said, ‘Well, thank you very much. That’s very kind of you.’ And he said, ‘Okay, then.’”

* Daily Herald | No red wave here: Democratic congressional candidates won big in the suburbs: Despite projections of a red wave that would push Republicans into office in Illinois and across the country, Democrats — nearly all of them incumbents — swept all eight suburban congressional seats in Tuesday’s election.

* Daily Herald | Syed’s defeat of Bos in 51st House District bucked trend of incumbent victories in Northwest suburbs : “I’m feeling very, very grateful,” she said Wednesday. “I think we laid it all out there. We communicated our message. We wanted to let constituents in this district know what exactly I would fight for in the state legislature, in our suburban district and the place that I’ve called home, and a place that I was born and raised in, and I have a lot of care for this community.”

* WTTW | South Side Voters Speak Up for Trees in Jackson Park and South Shore. Is Anyone Listening?: Should the city of Chicago stop cutting down trees in Jackson Park and the area surrounding the South Shore Cultural Center? […] An overwhelming number of ballots — 82% — were cast in the affirmative, according to unofficial totals from the Chicago Board of Elections.

* Tribune | Progressive challenger Brandon Johnson lands another big union endorsement: An influential labor group with ties to the Chicago Teachers Union announced its endorsement of Brandon Johnson for mayor on Wednesday, adding to the list of labor organizations opting to back the Cook County commissioner over other progressives, including U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García.

* Jerusalem Post | Alarming rise in American Jewish children’s complaints of antisemitism at schools: The Israeli-American Council’s (IAC) School Watch initiative reported a rise of hundreds of percent of complaints on behalf of Jewish children on antisemitism in schools, one year after the watchdog’s founding. School Watch was designed to “contribute to a safe school environment and reduce incidents of antisemitism, anti-Zionism, national origin discrimination and hate,” according to its mission statement.

* The Daily Beast | The Six Biggest Takeaways From Musk’s Groveling Call With Twitter Advertisers:Amid a mass exodus of advertisers, “Chief Twit” Elon Musk took to his newly purchased social media platform on Wednesday to assure companies that Twitter will remain a safe space for their brands. In an hour-long livestream, known as a “Twitter Space,” Musk cajoled advertisers with promises of robust content moderation and account verification practices. The billionaire faces a formidable challenge: shoring up Twitter’s revenues without alienating the highly vocal band of right-wing users who initially celebrated the acquisition.

* Politico | Crypto kingpin bet a fortune on Democrats. Now he’s lost it all.: Crypto megadonor Sam Bankman-Fried helped bankroll Democrats’ overperformance in the midterms. But any friends he may have had in Washington won’t be there for him as his crumbling business empire threatens to torpedo the entire digital currency market.

* FiveThirtyEight | Abortion Rights Are Reshaping American Politics: Results are still pending in some key states like Arizona, but Democrats won many contests that will shape abortion access for the next few years — and in some cases, much longer. Abortion-rights supporters managed to enshrine the right to abortion in three state constitutions, including the crucial state of Michigan, where a near-total ban on abortion from 1931 has been tangled up in court battles for months. And supporters notched another consequential win in Kentucky, where a majority of the state’s voters opposed a ballot measure that would have explicitly clarified that abortion rights was not protected under the state constitution.

       

33 Comments - Torco Sign - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:11 pm: Robin O’Connor would’ve won had she just stayed a Democrat. It shows real ineptitude to not see that nearly every Democrat was winning in Lake County. It’s been that way for a few cycles now. - Norseman - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:16 pm: If Hastings does pull it off, perhaps JB - hisgirlfriday - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:17 pm: On the crypto front, just decided to check out GOP primary candidate Jesse Sullivan’s Twitter feed to see if he was weighing in on it. But instead he was lamenting an anti-abortion referendum in Montana failing and proclaiming “We deserve God’s righteous judgment on our nation.” Yikes. - Norseman - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:18 pm: Oops. If Hastings does pull it off, perhaps JB can come up with a harmless cush job to arm-twist Hastings into taking. The man needs to go. - Oswego Willy - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:18 pm: ===But some saw it as an insult because it wasn’t used to help any candidates win office=== That is.. that’s biting good right there to the honesty of a lack of self-awareness. “Meanwhile” SGOP folks got OzingaBucks. That’s fun. - Been There - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:21 pm: ====the AP was only reporting suburban Cook County numbers in Sen. Bill Cunningham’s race.==== This was driving me crazy on election night and the next day until I realized they were only using suburban numbers for him. His two state reps, Hurley and Burke were getting 61%. I could possibly see some drop off but that much didn’t make sense. - Big Dipper - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:21 pm: The 41st ward is the only one where the alderman admits he’s a Republican (although basically true in 45 and 38 as well). - Oswego Willy - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:24 pm: ===But some saw it as an insult because it wasn’t used to help any candidates win office=== To argue the other side for a minute… yeah, “I’m not the leader, I didn’t want to overtly overstep Durkin by funding folks, but…” I guess it depends on when Ozinga thought about it… - JoanP - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:25 pm: = South Side Voters Speak Up for Trees = Oh, give me a break. If I’m reading the Board of Elections website correctly, that was on the ballot in exactly TWO precincts, one in the 5th Ward and one in the 7th. - hisgirlfriday - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:28 pm: Looking at the Illinois electoral landscape as a Dem, I just want to say thank you thank you thank you to all the Dems that kicked MJM to the curb before he could derail the party for the ‘22 cycle. Would have liked that to have happened many years sooner but kudos to those who saw disaster ahead and kicked him out and in this election showed what Dems in the state could do without him. From a wider lens, it is fascinating to me to see how much the Illinois Democratic Party had it together this cycle compared to the dysfunctional Dems in New York. They got the maps right, did not neglect the courts, and fended off the GOP big city crime messaging in the burbs in a way that New York Dems didn’t. I realize a big part of the difference was JB’s money but smart campaigning played a big part too. - Oswego Willy - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:30 pm: ===In January, a record number of Democrats are set to be sworn in as state representatives in the Illinois House=== “Because… Madigan” Maybe with a new Leader the HGOP will find out that new messaging needs to be a change too. #RedWaveOfILGOPChanges - vern - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:31 pm: +1 to what Torco said. A Republican incumbent has now lost that race two elections in a row, which isn’t something you hear every day. More broadly, DeVore is right and part of the problem. Republicans have spent two years effectively caging their own voters. Telling them not to vote by mail, not to vote early, that their vote doesn’t count at all. Telling them that polling places are rife with fraud and they need to bring their own pens. Oh, and on top of that, telling their voters not to get vaccinated against preventable diseases. Republicans did everything they could to lose this election, and that’s exactly what happened. If they want to win, they should try to win. Encourage their base to vote by whatever mechanism is available. Appeal to moderates and swing voters. Work hard, knock on doors, don’t act insane. And if at all possible, give voters the information they need to not die of Covid before election day. - 47th Ward - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:32 pm: ===perhaps JB can come up with a harmless cush job to arm-twist Hastings into taking=== You shouldn’t get Hastings hope up like that Norseman. Do you think Pritzker wants that baggage to stick to him? I don’t think so. Best guess is he stays in the Senate. Heck, I don’t think Pritzker really minds if this is Harmon’s problem. And he sure doesn’t want it to be his problem. - Juice - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:43 pm: “ In January, a record number of Democrats are set to be sworn in as state representatives in the Illinois House” Not true. In 1964, the Dems won 118 seats (in the then 177 seat House) which was a full two thirds of the chamber. If Greenwood does pull ahead, and the Dems end up with 78, it’s still just shy of the 2/3rds at 66.1% of the House. - Facts Matter - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:51 pm: It appears that Mr. Devore is attempting to figure out how to extend his 15 minutes of fame. The end of Covid mask and vaccination mandates along with his election loss have eliminated the things that kept him in the news over the past two and a half years. - Amalia - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:56 pm: I truly hope the Democrats understand that the vote was fueled by reaction to the Supreme Court’s abortion decision. Moving forward people will respond to well run government that is fiscally responsible and deals with criminal justice issues with fairness to the public both in how police treat people but especially in how the public is made to feel safer. - Oswego Willy - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 1:59 pm: - Candy Dogood- doing Golden Horseshoe things. Good stuff right there. Thanks. - Oswego Willy - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:00 pm: ===Moving forward people will respond=== I have zero idea what 2024 or beyond will look like. Good Governance is always a campaign winner, it’s tough to predict a whole cycle as it’s only “hours old” - Anyone Remember - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:07 pm: “In 1964, the Dems won 118 seats … .” One of whom was Elmo McClain. - Early voter - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:10 pm: Bob Rita had accusations decades ago of domestic abuse worse than the accusations against Michael Hastings. Rita is still around today and Hastings will still be around decades from today. - Roadrager - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:11 pm: ==From a wider lens, it is fascinating to me to see how much the Illinois Democratic Party had it together this cycle compared to the dysfunctional Dems in New York.== A couple of factors at play in New York: During his tenure, Andrew Cuomo actually supported and beefed up the GOP in the state legislature and encouraged a split of liberal Dems and Blue Dogs, because it helped cement his status as the true center of party power in the state. After he deservedly went away, the mindset of his state operation remained the same, propping up center and center-right candidates and working to push out those to the left. The big consultant name involved is Lis Smith, whose election track record can best be described as “neoliberal Dan Proft” and whose personal life involving New York Dems you do not want to Google. So, when presented with the ballot options of “Republican Lite” or “Flamin’ Hot Republican,” New York voters did as you’d expect them to do. And the establishment and consultants will say it’s the fault of the left. - Lakefront - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:12 pm: Somehow this is the most competent argument I’ve ever seen from DeVore and that’s…that’s saying something with the quality of his argument. It’s true though, republicans can’t bash early voting and mail-ins anymore. Its terrible politics. I’m glad DeVore recognizes this but the seeds of distrust have been sown for so long… - The Way I See It - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:24 pm: Devore isn’t entirely wrong. The Republican Party, setting aside their horrible ideas, embrace of conspiracy theorists, and general retreat from reality, is fundamentally broken. They seemingly don’t know how to recruit candidates, raise money, or get out the vote. I am as solid a D as they come, but having one party being an hollowed out shell is not good for democracy as a whole. The years of relying on Rauner, Griffin, and Uihlein to fund the whole apparatus has left it without the ability to fend for itself. Sad! - Rogo - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:33 pm: ===having one party being an hollowed out shell is not good for democracy as a whole=== This is perhaps the greatest tragedy of our current political conundrum. - Oswego Willy - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:40 pm: ===having one party being an hollowed out shell is not good for democracy as a whole.=== Until the ILGOP de-invests itself with Raunerites who purposely hurt Illinois (or… they publicly acknowledge that there needs to be better ways for change, “I learned a lesson not to do that again” mea culpas will do, thanks) and the total denunciation of racist thinkers, conspiracy theorists and insurrection apologists… I have no personal problem with a party so weak it can’t hurt Illinois from within. Otherwise, why have a two party system where the other “strong” party is dedicated to destroying democracy? - SaulGoodman - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:40 pm: ** perhaps JB can come up with a harmless cush job to arm-twist Hastings into taking** One – that’s disgusting Two – this idea sure didn’t work out very well for Rauner/John Anthony - cover - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 2:46 pm: = Ozinga committed to helping the House Republican Majority)this cycle as finance chair and said he would personally give $2 million to the fund, according to a person familiar with the arrangement. But Ozinga didn’t end up committing anything after all. He gave more to the Senate Republicans than he did to the House Republicans. = Maybe the Representative should change his name to “Bazinga” /s - Day Late - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 3:22 pm: == Bob Rita had accusations decades ago of domestic abuse worse than the accusations against Michael Hastings. Rita is still around today and Hastings will still be around decades from today.== Great. The Woman Beater Caucus gains a member in the IL General Assembly. We are so progressive and welcoming to women here. /s - Mail Recipient - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 3:40 pm: I got a mid-October issue of the Lake County Gazette today, two days after election day. Am I going to continue to get these faux newspapers forever or is Proft/LGIS going to give up the charade? - Armitage - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 3:40 pm: ==Devore FB Post”It is not impossible for Republicans to be successful state-wide in IL, but it will never happen until conservative minded people put together an intelligent team to build the infrastructure necessary. I’m considering how we might try and deal with this.== The first step is fielding candidates that think the United States should continue elect our leaders in a democratic fashion. - The Velvet Frog - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 3:43 pm: Hastings was asked to resign. What would be the next step for him, is there a way for them to vote to remove him from office? - Hannibal Lecter - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 3:48 pm: === is there a way for them to vote to remove him from office? === Nope - Demoralized - Thursday, Nov 10, 22 @ 3:57 pm: ==Nope== Yes, there is. Senate rules allow a member to be expelled with a 2/3 vote. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.