* Gov. Pritzker was asked today why he became involved in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race. Pritzker contributed $1 million to the state party and $20,000 directly to Janet Protasiewicz…
First of all, the Wisconsin Supreme Court race was a critically important race. There were election deniers that had been running for offices all over Wisconsin. You know, it’s a swing state. It’s an important state in the general election, in next year’s presidential election. There were moves to invalidate electors in Wisconsin… three years ago. And so having a Supreme Court made up of rational, non-extremist people who will simply evaluate the law and do the right thing is very, very important to all of us across the nation. In addition to that, it happens that one of the candidates was a severely anti-choice candidate, somebody who wanted to abide by an 1800s law in Wisconsin that should have been frankly, not part of the discussion, but that would have literally made women second-class citizens in the state of Wisconsin. And one of the candidates was pro-choice and wanted to make sure that we were upholding the equal rights of women in Wisconsin. So, to me, that’s an important race. I’ve supported Democrats all across the country. She was a Democrat, and I was glad to be one of the leading supporters of of her race. And she won, by the way and then it was literally an overwhelming victory of 11 points.
Please pardon all transcription errors.
* Krishnamoorthi press release…
On Tuesday, candidates of AAPI origin backed by Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D IL-08)- Alderwoman Nicole Lee of the 11th Ward in Chicago, Zubair Kahn, an incumbent school board member for the Community Consolidated School Board District 15, and Samreen Khan, a candidate for U-46 School Board- made history in winning their respective elections. Nicole Lee became the first Chinese-American woman elected to a full term on the Chicago City Council, Zubair Khan retained his seat as the first Muslim-American to serve on the District 15 School Board, and Samreen Khan became the first Asian-American woman to win a seat on the District U-46 school board.
“I’m incredibly proud to have endorsed and supported these stellar candidates and public servants,” said Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi. “These critical victories in 2023 follow an historic 2022 election cycle, where we shattered glass ceilings by electing diverse AAPI leaders at the state and local level in Illinois. Nicole, Samreen, and Zubair represent the best of their communities and I know they’ll continue to deliver for the people that elected them.”
“I’d also like to thank Congressman Raja again for his unyielding support of my campaign for School Board, the second largest School Board in Illinois,” said Samreen Khan. “Having the support of Congressman Raja confirms his understanding that ‘If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu’. I’m looking forward to continuing to work with him during my term on behalf of all of us.”
“Thank you to Congressman Raja and the many state AAPI elected leaders, from Senator Ram Villivalam to Rep. Theresa Mah, who strongly coalesced around my campaign to represent the first majority Asian ward in the history of the City of Chicago,” said Alderwoman Nicole Lee. I am very grateful for the strong support of the AAPI diaspora, and I look forward to serving as their voice on the Chicago City Council.”
“I also want to thank every candidate who ran for local elected office, from Trustee to Park District Commissioner, who wasn’t successful,” Congressman Krishnamoorthi added. “Your leadership will serve as a building block for the future as we collectively work to form a more diverse government that is truly representative of the people it serves. And I will continue to have your back.”
States considering enacting biometric privacy legislation should be “wary” of following Illinois’ example, which has exposed businesses to massive costs, a new study shared exclusively with Bloomberg Law concludes.
Employers using biometric timekeeping technology are especially at risk of litigation under the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act, according to the analysis of 296 federal and 381 state court filings released Wednesday by the Chamber of Progress. It found 88% of the BIPA litigation arose from employer-employee disputes over biometric timekeeping.
The announcement of a $109 million health sciences building at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville was the highlight of a Thursday morning press conference at SIUE by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
Pritzker is visiting universities across the state to promote his proposed FY24 budget, which includes an $80 million increase in higher education funding and record investments in MAP (Monetary Award Program) grants.
The funding is made possible by the governor’s bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital plan, the largest capital plan in state history.
* This could be seen as a message to Darren Bailey…
U.S. Representative Mike Bost (IL-12) today announced that his campaign raised over $400,000 in the first quarter and is approaching $700,000 cash-on-hand.
“I am humbled by the overwhelming grassroots and financial support our campaign has received from across the new 12th District,” said Bost. “We are in the midst of a major battle to protect our rights as parents, our rights as law-abiding gun owners, and our rights as citizens who deserve to be safe from crime, drugs, and open borders. We’re taking the fight directly to the woke leftists and extreme liberals who undermine our values at every turn. And we have the conservative record and resources to win.”
Happy Thursday, Illinois. Just 153 days until nominating petitions are due for 2024, folks. h/t John Amdor
Amdor tweeted that petitions can be circulated in 153 days. He didn’t claim that petitions are due in 153 days.
* IML press release…
On April 6th, the Illinois Municipal League (IML), in partnership with the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS), released Volume 7 of the Illinois Municipal Policy Journal. This academic journal addresses critical issues Illinois and its municipalities are facing.
This volume of the Journal includes articles on sustainability and climate action plans, networked supply chains, political civility, population and employment changes, a study on policing and a study on the impact of video gaming. The Journal also includes a book review of Survival of the City: Living and Thriving in an Age of Isolation.
“In recent years, challenges have grown and become more complex for state and local governments,” said Brad Cole, IML Executive Director. “As municipalities continue to push forward, this Journal equips leaders at all levels of government with solid academic research to broaden their understanding of topics to help build stronger, more vibrant communities.”
Since 2016, IML has published the Journal as a resource that provides elected and appointed officials with academic research on issues facing Illinois and its 1,295 cities, villages and towns. Additionally, it provides an arena for academics to publish their scholarly work on important topics, like municipal budgeting, public health and public financing of infrastructure projects.
The Journal is shared with political science and public administration departments at colleges and universities throughout the state. It is also distributed to the Illinois General Assembly and constitutional officers, the Illinois Congressional Delegation and other IML partners.
The Journal is available, free of charge (excluding shipping and handling), at iml.org/publications. An electronic version is also available at iml.org/journal.
* Press release…
Frontline Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) employees are now able to take training to safely and effectively use pepper spray in emergency situations, with the goal of being better able to protect themselves in the field. The training also includes instruction on situational awareness. The new program was created by legislation filed by State Senator Steve McClure (R-Springfield).
“Frontline DCFS employees need to be able to stay safe while they work to protect vulnerable children and families,” said Senator McClure. “I hope this program gives them vital tools and information that they can use to help protect themselves.”
Recently, Senator McClure was able to take the training course along with DCFS employees and Rodrigo Remolina, the Acting Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs for DCFS. They were trained in how to properly deploy pepper spray against an attacker, as well as how to safely carry the products. They were also sprayed with pepper spray to learn how their own bodies would react to it, so that they can be ready for situations where they deploy pepper spray in self-defense, but wind or other factors cause them to come into contact with the spray.
“Pepper spray is a serious tool for self-defense, and very painful for attackers who are sprayed,” said McClure. “If pepper spray can give an investigator even a few extra moments to escape a bad situation, it could prevent a tragedy.”
In 2022, McClure’s legislation was signed into law, requiring the Illinois State Police to develop a training program for DCFS employees on the proper usage of pepper spray for self-defense. The legislation allows DCFS employees who complete the training to carry pepper spray while on the job. McClure had filed the legislation in response to the deaths of DCFS investigators Pamela Knight and Deidre Silas, who were both tragically killed while on the job. Silas was a constituent of McClure’s.
“DCFS is grateful to Senator McClure and the sponsors of Public Act 102-0990 for their support and commitment to keeping our child protection investigators safe,” said DCFS Director Marc D Smith. “When he attended our training in Bloomington, Senator McClure received firsthand experience with just how potent the OC pepper spray is, even from a distance. This training is critical to ensure the safety of our staff and those we serve and we’re grateful for Senator McClure’s support in these efforts.”
Senator McClure took part in the training session in Bloomington on March 24th.
Video…
* Update to the Twitter issue that I mentioned yesterday…
We’re pleased to announce our access to the Twitter API has been restored. Posting to Twitter has resumed. We appreciate your patience and support. Happy posting!
* Patch | Lake Forest High School Students Walk Out In Gun Violence Protest: About 100 Lake Forest High School students took part in the protest, which was also attended by about 50 adults, the Lake County News-Sun reported, including several Democratic politicians. Organizers Alia Attar, a Lake Forest senior, and Sophia Zar, a Lake Bluff junior, said the turnout exceeded their expectations. There are about 1,500 students enrolled at LFHS.
* Press release | City Of Chicago Held in Violation of Americans with Disabilities Act: In April of 2021, the Justice Department moved to intervene in a disability discrimination lawsuit that people with visual disabilities brought against the City under the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act. The United States’ complaint in intervention alleged that the city fails to provide people who are blind, have low vision or are deaf-blind with equal access to pedestrian signal information at intersections. Pedestrian signal information, such as a flashing “Walk/Don’t Walk” signal, indicates when it is safe to cross the street for sighted pedestrians.
* Lake County News-Sun | Three newly elected Waukegan aldermen plan to form Hispanic caucus; ‘More people will feel like they’re represented’: Felix said he, Guzman and Martinez plan to form a Hispanic caucus, which he believes will activate the Latinx community now approaching a majority in the city, as well as benefit Waukegan overall. “It’s beautiful to see the three of us going to the council,” Felix said. “More people will feel like they’re represented. More people will pay attention. We’ll hear more Hispanic voices, and when they get engaged in the community it benefits everyone.”
* Naperville Sun | Kelly returned to Naperville council, joined by McBroom and Longenbaugh; Wilson holds lead for 4th seat: Incumbent Patrick Kelly said he’s grateful voters reelected him to a second four-year term on the Naperville City Council. He was the top vote-getter this week in a crowded field of 11 candidates, garnering 13% of the vote, followed by newcomers Allison Longenbaugh, a Naperville Public Library Board member who also received 13%, and Josh McBroom, a former Naperville Park Board commissioner who received 12%, unofficial election results show.
* ABC Chicago | Northwestern submits $800M Ryan Field redevelopment plan to City of Evanston: An informational meeting was held Wednesday with the community, and minority and women-owned businesses, as the university submits its redevelopment application to the City of Evanston for the $800 million project. The project will completely redesign Ryan Field. Although it will lower capacity by 12,000, it will add new multi-use space on the outside in the largest single capital expenditure in Northwestern and Evanston history.
* NPR Illinois | Officials mark continued progress on Springfield Rail Improvements Project: This week, work began on new $68.3 million underpasses at Madison and Jefferson Streets. By separating railroad tracks from regular vehicle traffic, the overpasses will reduce congestion and delays, improve safety, provide better access for bikes and pedestrians and cut down on emergency response times. “When all is said and done, $475 million will have been invested in the Springfield Rail Improvements Program — with $262 million already out the door. These investments bring us another step closer to building a rejuvenated, multimodal transportation system that works for everyone,” Pritzker said.
* Kaiser Health News | Gavin Newsom wanted California to cut ties with Walgreens. Then federal law got in the way.: Check Into Cash was an especially abusive example of a practice that has hurt a vulnerable part of the workforce. Because of the contracts, companies can practically own their workers, who would then face greatly diminished prospects if they decide to leave. The FTC has rightly identified these one-sided deals involving low-paid workers as anti-competitive restraints on trade that suppress job mobility and wages. In Illinois, the Check Into Cash case inspired legislation that was surprisingly fair-minded. Rather than ban non-competes, as worker advocates initially wanted, Illinois lawmakers balanced the concerns of employers as well as employees to specifically protect workers earning $75,000 a year or less
* Crain’s | Feds plan demolition between historic State Street skyscrapers: “A recent conditions assessment found the nonhistoric building, which has been unoccupied for several years, is not structurally sound and presents risks, including potential facade collapse that would endanger pedestrians and street traffic,” the GSA’s press release said.
* WCIA | Central Illinois city named top place in state for beer lovers: The website Move.org found that Springfield was named the best city in Illinois for beer lovers. The rankings were determined by highest capita of breweries within city limits for municipalities with populations over 100,000. The site found there are six breweries, contact brewers and microbreweries in the capital city, including Engrained Brewing Company, Obed and Isaac’s Microbrewery, Buzz Bomb Brewery, and Anvil & Forge Brewing and Distilling.
* Daily Herald | A new home for Rocky the coyote: Rocky was born under a deck in Tennessee in 2018 and was mistaken for a German shepherd puppy. By the time people learned he was a coyote, he already had imprinted on humans. He was moved to River Trail Nature Center when efforts to rehabilitate him to live in the wild failed. Despite the efforts of Rocky’s advocates, which include In Defense of Animals and the Chicago Alliance for Animals, to have him moved to The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg, Colorado, the Forest Preserves of Cook County has stood firm about displaying the animal as part of the Animal Ambassadors program.
* Gov. Pritzker was asked today about a bill passed by the Senate to rescind the state’s longtime moratorium on constructing new nuclear plants. The object is to spur development of small nuke plants…
Over the years, I think the environmental movement has looked at nuclear differently, especially over the last 15 years, than it did prior. Because you talk about nuclear today, you’re not talking about building another Byron plant or Zion as it used to be. Instead, you’re talking about small modular reactors. And that’s something that’s new. They’re small, they are considered much, much safer. There’s something you can really, if you had a million square foot plant for example, you could have your own small modular reactor that’s next to that plant that’s providing all the energy just for that plant.
So you know, banning nuclear entirely in a world where it’s become much safer and these are smaller, less prone to an accident, more likely for us to be able to maintain them for a long period of time. That’s something that’s worthy of consideration.
Now the devil’s in the details and we want to make sure that we’re not just opening this up to nuclear everywhere or any type of nuclear. So, I’ve talked to Sen. Rezin a bit about this and to some of the people who are contemplating sponsoring it in the House, and we will continue that dialogue. I don’t know where that bill will go this session, but I’m not opposed to it as if I’m just dead set against any nuclear. I just want, if we’re going to consider it, it’s got to be safe.
Well, I congratulate her on her victory. I’ve worked with Mayor Langfelder now for the last four years, and we’ve gotten an awful lot done for Springfield together and I know that I’ll work with the new mayor on whatever is best for the city of Springfield. We all spend an awful lot of time here, even if we’re not here full time. And we know that this is a special city. It’s our capital city, it ought to shine for the world. We want to bring tourists and bring the rest of the world to Springfield. And so I’m going to work closely, as I will with the mayors all across the state of Illinois.
* He was also asked about why he thought the move to ban books was gaining steam and where it was coming from…
Well, the extremists are coming after your literature. They’re coming after your libraries, they’re coming after your books under the guise of ‘we’re protecting somebody.’ That’s always the guise under which people end up banning or burning books.
The reality is more information is better. Obviously we all believe in age-appropriate materials. But the reality is our libraries have been able to manage this for years and years and years. And all of a sudden there’s this mythical thing that’s popped up with the far right, that, you know these books are being pushed on people somehow. That’s not what’s happening hasn’t been happening. Just like there’s no CRT in schools. They’ve made that up. K through 12 education has no CRT. In higher ed, there are graduate programs where people are teaching, learning, choosing. These are adults choosing to take courses like that or teach them. But K 12 education, there’s no CRT, just like there is no need for us to take books off the shelves in our libraries. They have been age appropriate for many years, librarians are highly capable of managing that.
* On that topic, he was asked which book had the most impact on him growing up…
You’re gonna look for me to pick Moby Dick or some other major classic. But I’m going to tell you the book that had the most impact on me. My great-grandfather immigrated to this country from Ukraine in 1881. And he was nine years old when he arrived. He had nothing. He sold Chicago Tribunes on a street corner to survive. There was a social service agency that gave him a place to live, a public school that gave him a place to go to school and learn English. And he became a successful lawyer during his lifetime.
He wrote a book near the end of his life, it’s called Three Score after Ten. It’s not on the bookshelves anywhere because it was just written privately by him for our family. And it’s a quite a long tome, but it’s about the history of my family, where we came from, the challenges that our family went through, the the fact that our lives, our family’s lives were threatened, had to escape and become refugees out of Ukraine, and made it to the United States. And it’s one of the reasons I believe in standing up for refugees and helping them resettle when they come to the United States when they’re escaping violence. So that book had an enormous impact on me. I read it when I was 13 years old first, and I’ve probably read it at least five or seven times since. .
* AG Raoul…
Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 22 states, urged the Biden administration to scrap dangerous federal rules that allow employers to interfere in the reproductive health decisions of their employees.
The rules, put in place under the prior administration, took away contraceptive coverage from women who should have been entitled to complete coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). They added broad, unreasonable exemptions that allowed nearly all types of employers to deny birth control coverage to their employees based on religious or moral objections.
In a comment letter addressed to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su, Raoul and the coalition applaud the Biden administration’s proposal to restore access to cost-free contraceptive coverage by rescinding the moral exemption and creating alternate means to cover contraceptive services for individuals whose plan sponsors claim the religious exemption. However, the letter also expresses opposition to the administration’s decision to retain the overly broad religious exemption promulgated in 2018, which is deemed far beyond what is necessary to protect those with religious objections.
“More than 60 million women rely on coverage for preventative services, including contraception, as a fundamental part of their health care plan,” Raoul said. “Access to contraceptive care supports people’s ability to control their reproductive health and promotes access to education, jobs and financial empowerment. Employers do not have the right to stand between their employees and the reproductive health care they need.”
By the way, I checked back in my records and on @capitolfax for May 14, 2019 - the day the simultaneous FBI raids occurred - to see what was going on in Springfield that day. Was the day of the (mostly) annual House vs. Senate softball game. For the record, the House won 15 to 5. https://t.co/wHgJkjYyyT
Gov. J.B. Pritzker appointed five new members to the board of trustees of Northeastern Illinois University, pending confirmation by the Illinois Senate.
The announcement comes after trustees moved to oust president Gloria Gibson amid concerns over the school’s flagging enrollment and abysmal graduation rates. Four of the previous trustees’ terms have expired and another quit in frustration. The board is made up of nine members. […]
As Crain’s previously reported, the faculty last fall issued a vote of no confidence in president Gibson and followed that with another no-confidence vote for the board. By then, the board had acted, deciding not to renew Gibson’s contract that expires June 30. In February, the vice president for enrollment management resigned.
A federal judge in Chicago held the City of Chicago liable for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act by failing to provide accessible pedestrian signals at signalized intersections throughout the city to those who are blind or have low vision.
In April of 2021, the Justice Department moved to intervene in a disability discrimination lawsuit that people with visual disabilities brought against the City under the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act. The United States’ complaint in intervention alleged that the city fails to provide people who are blind, have low vision or are deaf-blind with equal access to pedestrian signal information at intersections. Pedestrian signal information, such as a flashing “Walk/Don’t Walk” signal, indicates when it is safe to cross the street for sighted pedestrians.
Accessible pedestrian signals (APSs) are devices that provide pedestrians with safe-crossing information in a non-visual format, such as through audible tones, speech messages and vibrotactile surfaces. Since at least 2006, Chicago has recognized the need to install APSs for pedestrians with visual disabilities, specifically identifying the need for such installation in multiple city documents. Yet, while Chicago currently provides sighted pedestrians visual crossing signals at nearly 2,800 intersections, the United States’ suit alleged that — at the time it intervened — fewer than one percent of those were equipped with APSs for people who are blind or have low vision.
On March 31, U.S. District Judge Elaine E. Bucklo sided with the United States and the private plaintiffs in a decision on both sides’ motions for summary judgment, holding the city in violation of the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The court found that the city had provided APS at only a “miniscule portion of the whole,” and thus had failed “to provide ‘meaningful access’ to its network of existing facilities and to ensure that newly constructed signals are designed and constructed in such a manner as to be ‘readily accessible’ by blind individuals.”
* NYT | Chicago Mayor’s Race Could Be a Blueprint for Democratic Messaging on Crime: Mr. Johnson’s victory may be a lesson for other Democrats struggling with the issue under the verbal assault of Republicans. Representative Delia Ramirez, a newly elected progressive Democrat from Chicago’s Northwest Side, was ecstatic. “We’ve had a police department that had been attempting to do the jobs of social workers, counselors, mediators, you name it,” she said. “What we haven’t had is help.”
* Tribune | Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s advice to successor Brandon Johnson: ‘Be humble. Be grateful.’: Later in the day, Lightfoot broke weeks of silence since losing her bid for re-election to address a question about what advice she’d give Johnson when it comes to handling the all-too-frequent call of a first responder death. This time, it was Chicago Fire Department Lt. Jan Tchoryk, 55. “Be humble. Be grateful,” Lightfoot said she would tell her successor. “Our first responders literally give their lives. There’s a lot of rhetoric that’s out there about first responders, particularly on the police side. When you’ve seen what I’ve seen, when you have to make the calls that I’ve had to make, you better be humble, and you better be grateful.”
* The 21st Show | What’s going on in the ComEd trials?: To explain the history of the case and what’s been happening in court, The 21st was joined by a pair of journalists who have been following the story, Dave McKinney and Hannah Meisel.
* KFVS | Carolin Harvey wins election to become first Black mayor of Carbondale: ”I want to say thank you and I would like to say hopefully we all can work together whether you voted for me or not,” Harvey said. “We’re all part of Carbondale and we want to move forward to do what’s best for all of the citizens of Carbondale.”
* Medill Reports | ‘I’m not that scared kid anymore’: Highland Park’s Rachel Jacoby on her path to becoming an anti-gun violence activist: Jacoby, 26, never expected to be on the front line of the anti-gun violence movement. She grew up “Midwestern polite”: She didn’t talk about religion or politics. She hung out with her parents, baked the “best cookies in Highland Park” and competed in soccer, tennis and other sports. But today, she is one of the loudest voices fighting for change and a driving force behind recent groundbreaking gun-reform legislation in Illinois.
* Crain’s | Northwestern, U of C join effort to boost enrollment from rural America: The newly formed STARS College Network is bankrolled by a $20 million gift from Chicago-based Trott Family Philanthropies, the foundation of Byron and Tina Trott. The nationwide effort is designed to empower students to find the best institution for them, whether that be a STARS — Small-Town And Rural Students — member university or not, said James G. Nondorf, STARS co-chair and vice president of enrollment and student advancement at the University of Chicago, in a statement.
* Bloomberg | For-profit colleges ask Supreme Court to block student loan deal: The emergency application, which challenges the Education Department’s authority to cancel so many loans in the accord, bears similarities to a pending Supreme Court fight over President Joe Biden’s plan to slash the student debt of more than 40 million people. The Supreme Court’s handling of the new case could offer hints about the outcome of the bigger fight. The court heard arguments on Biden’s plan Feb. 28 and is scheduled to rule by the end of June.
* State Journal-Register | Cannabis, electric aggregation questions fail; township questions pass: Chatham voters saw two cannabis-related measures on their ballots, one allowing dispensaries to establish businesses and the other permitting growers, cultivation centers, and transporters to operate within the village. […] Before 9 p.m., 100% of the 11 voting precincts had been tallied and the advisory questions failed. Slightly more than 1,500 voters cast their ballots on the questions, where neither levied more than 45% of the voter’s support.
* PJ Star | Fulton County suffers damage from funnel clouds, storms: Illinois Route 100 was closed Tuesday night from Lewistown to the junction with Illinois Route 78 due to multiple power poles and power lines being down, according to the Fulton County Emergency Services and Disaster Agency. Authorities also reported that several people were injured from the storm. The National Weather Service in Lincoln said one funnel cloud was observed near Bryant.
* NPR | Twitter labels NPR’s account as ’state-affiliated media’, which is untrue: NPR operates independently of the U.S. government. And while federal money is important to the overall public media system, NPR gets less than 1% of its annual budget, on average, from federal sources. Noting the millions of listeners who support and rely upon NPR for “independent, fact-based journalism,” NPR CEO John Lansing stated, “NPR stands for freedom of speech and holding the powerful accountable. It is unacceptable for Twitter to label us this way. A vigorous, vibrant free press is essential to the health of our democracy.”
* NFL | Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon runs 4.42-second 40-yard dash at private workout: The 5-foot-11, 181-pound Witherspoon ran 40-yard dash times of 4.46 and 4.42 seconds at his private workout at Illinois, according to NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah. Because of a hamstring injury, Witherspoon was unable to work out at all at the NFL Scouting Combine or Illinois’ pro day on March 10.
* Capital B | What Happens When a Black Enclave Is Built by Big Oil: Despite a historic focus on environmental injustices by the Biden administration, ExxonMobil leaders last year cited his administration’s calls for the country’s oil companies to ramp up production as one of the motivators behind completing the project. A recent forecast by the Energy Information Administration found that petrochemical projects ushered in during the first two years of Biden’s administration will not allow the country to reach a 50% drop in domestic greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 as once targeted by the administration.
* One problem the state government has had with recruiting new employees is convincing people to live in Springfield. The city just hasn’t moved forward in years. Maybe this will change things some…
Two-term mayor Jim Langfelder conceded Tuesday night following an unsuccessful bid for a third term as the city’s top official.
The concession means that City Treasurer Misty Buscher will be just the second woman elected mayor of Springfield. With all precincts reporting, Buscher defeated Langfelder by 772 votes, getting 51.5% of the vote to Langfelder’s 48.5%.
* Equality Illinois…
“We are extremely proud of the historic electoral victories of Clare Killman for the Carbondale City Council and Jackie McKethen for the Crete Library Board. With yesterday’s exciting election results, Killman will be the first Trans person to serve on a city council in Illinois and McKethen will be the first Trans person to serve on a library board in Illinois. With only five Trans people now elected to office in Illinois, Trans people remain severely underrepresented in all levels of government. Killman and McKethen will be powerful voices for change and will inspire more Trans people to run for office in their communities. Now more than ever, we need Trans voices in rooms of power. We look forward to advancing justice with Clare Killman on the Carbondale City Council and Jackie McKethen on the Crete Library Board.”
On Tuesday, April 4, just after 9 p.m., mayoral candidate Harold Visser conceded, giving the win to opponent Carolin Harvey. Harvey has been acting mayor, or mayor pro tem, since Mayor Mike Henry took a leave of absence.
She is now the City of Carbondale’s first Black mayor. Her platform includes curbing crime in the city and increasing the availability of housing for low and middle income families.
If unofficial totals hold once mail-in and early voting ballots are counted and with the election of Carolin Harvey as mayor, for the first time in Carbondale history a majority of the city council will be women.
* Some Awake Illinois results…
With 52 of 52 precincts counted (and some mail still to come) all three of Awake Illinois' candidates are trailing in the Quincy School District 172 race (Kaufman, Allen and Randolph). Quincy is pretty darned conservative. pic.twitter.com/f1NFzdukjW
— Illinois School Watch (@ILschoolwatch) April 5, 2023
…Adding… Those Quincy candidates were also supported by US Rep. Mary Miller and Tom Devore. And Darren Bailey’s candidate in Richland County’s school district, Dusty Kocher, lost.
Candidates from both of the informal slates seeking four seats on the Unit 5 school board said the heated race left them exhausted, though their reasons differ.
Vote totals as of late tonight indicate incumbents Amy Roser and Kelly Pyle, along with newcomers Alex Williams and Mark Adams, are slated to win those four seats. Together, they comprised an informal slate that was pro-referendum and endorsed by the Unit Five Education Association teachers’ union. […]
Dennis Frank was one of four candidates who ran on an informal Students First slate, largely united by a shared campaign value that the referendum was not a solution to a growing deficit in the district’s education fund. Frank ran with Mollie Emery, Brad Wurth and Amee Jada; none appeared to have a viable chance at snagging a seat as of late tonight with 100% precincts reporting. […]
“I think we ran a good race. I think it’s unfortunate that we voted in the same school board that we had before; Unit 5 is in a mess, I truly believe that,” Frank said. “I’m probably joining a lot of other people and I’ll probably leave the state of Illinois. That’s where my next step is — meaning you can’t stay here and hope for better things. We just keep voting the same way.”
* And, finally, my youngest brother (Isabel’s dad) won his race…
WE DID IT. 'Thank you' to every person who voted for me and supported our campaign. Now it is time to get to work!
…Adding… Moms Demand Action is declaring victory in some Illinois races…
• David Kaptain, who was elected Mayor of Elgin, IL
• Martha Paschke, who was elected Alderperson for Geneva, IL, Ward 4
• Kelly Henry, who was elected to the Elmhurst, IL School District 205 Board of Education
• Julie Hill, who was elected to the Glen Ellyn, IL School District 41 Board of Education
• Becky McCabe, who was elected to the St. Charles, IL Community School Unit District 303 Board of Education
• Beth Pope, who was elected to the Warren, IL Township High School District 121 Board of Education
• Meghan McMillin, who was elected to the West Northfield, IL School District 31 Board of Education
• Amy Sabor, who was elected to the Woodland, IL Community Consolidated School District 50 Board of Education
• Jackie McGrath, who was elected as Barrington, IL Public Library District Trustee
• Lauren Kunstler, who was elected as Geneva, IL Public Library Board Trustee
[Naperville mayoral candidate Scott] Wehrli took in almost twice as much in campaign donations as White, much of it from real estate developers and brokers and Republican political action committees, while much of White’s money came from unions and Democratic state lawmakers.
White voted for the city’s ban on the sale of assault rifles, made in response to last year’s mass shooting in Highland Park, while Wehrli questioned whether it’s made anyone safer. […]
Terry D’Arcy, a car dealer and well-known philanthropist, held a big lead and declared victory over two-term incumbent Bob O’Dekirk in the race for Joliet mayor. […]
Still, the mayor’s critics accuse him of alienating neighboring communities with an often-overbearing leadership style that provokes political infighting that has marred his tenure as mayor. The city has had five city managers in as many years. The Police Department, meanwhile, is on its fourth chief since 2017 and is the target of an ongoing Illinois attorney general’s office civil probe.
*** UPDATE *** From IEA President Kathi Griffin…
We are thrilled to see public education win and win big during the April 4 consolidated elections. This was an unprecedented school board election cycle. For the first time ever, there was a national dark money group created to put extremist, fringe candidates on our local school boards. But these outside influences were no match for our members and the good people of Illinois. Illinois voters have spoken. They believe we need strong public schools for all students.
It gives me great joy to say the Illinois Education Association (IEA) had a nearly 90 percent success rate in the races for which we recommended candidates. This confirms what we see reflected in the data from the IEA’s State of Education Report year after year, Illinoisans trust our educators most when it comes to making decisions within our public schools.
Our IEA locals participated in school board elections at an astounding rate this cycle. We were involved in upwards of 100 different races across the state, holding meet and greets, canvassing and campaigning on behalf of pro-public education candidates who will put our students first. We also supported and helped elect former public education teacher and union organizer, Brandon Johnson, to be Chicago’s next mayor. I want to issue a deep, heartfelt thank you to all our teachers, education support staff and public education advocates for your hard work. Because of you, voters knew what was at stake and overwhelmingly chose to support our students, our educators and our public schools. We know strong schools mean strong communities. Together we can do what’s best for ALL students. Public schools unite us.
If you find anything I’ve missed, please let me know in comments. Some outlets just didn’t have anything in place as of late this afternoon.
* I’ll adjust this live tweet list as we go along, adding or subtracting as necessary. You’ll likely see a bit of off-topic content here until the polls close and votes start to come in…
ALGONQUIN – Community Unit School District 300 School Board Candidate Kristina Konstanty filed a fake police report against an LGBTQ+ District 300 teacher. The false claim was filed after the openly gay, District 300 teacher, Lisa Kopetsky, made comments at a school board meeting supporting LGBTQ+ students and the district’s LGBTQ+ club, known as SWANS club, an acronym for “students who are not silent.”
“I don’t want anyone else to go through what I’ve had to go through.That’s the only reason I’m sharing my story,” Kopetsky said. “I’m a product of District 300 schools. I graduated from Jacobs High School. My children go to school here. I teach here. I love our schools and our community. But if I can be singled out and harassed because of my sexual orientation, so can our students. This is absolutely unacceptable. We have to do better.” […]
“Konstanty didn’t just file a fake police report against me. She’s gone after me online, harassing me through posts on social media. My phone won’t stop ringing with spam phone calls. My email inbox is overflowing. She’s doxing me. I’m worried about my safety and my family’s safety” Kopetsky said. “We need to do more to protect our educators. I totally understand why people leave the teaching profession. We have to do more, so we can save others from going through this nightmare.”
Shortly after APD closed Konstanty’s false report, she announced her candidacy for school board. Then, at the Jan. 10 school board meeting, Konstanty was openly campaigning for her school board candidacy, which is against Illinois Election Code. The district noted her behavior was “confrontational, disrespectful and abusive” in a No Trespass Notification letter sent to Konstanty. The letter also noted Konstanty is no longer allowed on District 300 property. […]
“She can’t even enter district property without receiving prior approval, but she’s running for school board? It should be abundantly clear to anyone looking over this timeline of events to see that Kristina Konstanty is not someone who is remotely qualified to serve our public schools,” Williamson said.
A New York-based political action committee belatedly reported that it so far has spent more than $13,000 backing conservative candidates in next week’s local school board elections in Illinois.
Its reports were submitted beginning late Tuesday after the Tribune wrote that the group had not disclosed what it spent on mailers that began arriving in Chicago-area mailboxes last week within the time frame required under state law.
The 1776 Project PAC — which, according to its website, funds school board candidates who support teaching “patriotism and pride in American history” and oppose the teaching of critical race theory — is backing more than a dozen candidates in Illinois districts including Barrington and Oswego in the April 4 election.
1776 Project PAC mailer…
* On to these unusual doorhangers in the Elmhurst area, which Isabel told you about yesterday. Notice that they have no “Paid for by” notification on them…
“Vote for anyone except these people,” is a different way of doing things. They even have a website…
These people waste class time on curriculum fads; waste money on “equity” consultants and curriculum; and only listen to special interest groups, to the detriment of good learning outcomes.
Some folks sure are upset about equity. Also, note how they claim these liberals are somehow book burners…
And not a single “Paid for by” on the site that I can find.
The hopefuls have no official alliances. But local progressives are backing incumbents Beth Hosler and Courtenae Trautmann and newcomers Kelly Asseff and Kelly Henry.
The most conservative candidate is seen as Tom Chavez, who has been speaking at board meetings for the last couple of years.
His supporters are also favoring Lan Li, Linda Nudera and Jammie Esker Schaer. […]
* : In Illinois, this ideological battle is on full display in Tuesday’s elections as residents throughout the state vote in mayoral and school and library board elections. Local school and library board elections, nonpartisan by design, now are subject to credible threats from candidates intent on furthering exclusionary policies such as book bans and opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion policies. The Democratic Party of Illinois has made an unprecedented commitment of $300,000 to combat them.
* Pantagraph | Meet the District 87 school board candidates: The four candidates for the Bloomington District 87 school board spoke with The Pantagraph recently about their priorities and goals if elected during Tuesday’s election.
* Patch | 9 Candidates Up For 4 Seats On District 200 Board: Nine candidates are in the running for four seats on the Community Unit School District 200 Board of Education. Two candidates are facing off for one unexpired two-year term and seven are vying for three open seats with full four-year terms.
* Patch | 4 Vie For 3 Seats On Palos Dist. 118 School Board: Four candidates running for three open seats on the Palos Dist. 118 school board in the April 4 consolidated election. Two candidates out of four responded to the Patch candidate questionnaire.
* Patch | ETHS, D-65 Elections: Who Will Be Elected To Evanston School Boards?: With only two incumbents running for three open seats on each of Evanston’s public school boards, there are bound to be new faces elected on Tuesday in Evanston/Skokie School District 65 and Evanston Township High School District 202.
* Patch | Nothing Quiet About D86 Board Race: Three of the candidates, Kay Gallo, Catherine Greenspon and Andrew Catton, are outspoken critics of Superintendent Tammy Prentiss, who was promoted in 2019. Like the other three, candidate Asma Akhras criticized the way Prentiss handled a high-profile incident involving an anti-racist consultant. Still another, Deborah Willoughby, praised the superintendent in a Patch questionnaire.
* Patch | 4 Vie For 3 Seats On Plainfield D202 Board Of Education: The candidates are Savena Joiner, Elias Kalantis, Margarita Morelos and Heather Roach. The only incumbent is Roach, who was first elected to the position in 2015 and reelected in 2019. Kevin Kirberg, who currently serves as Board president, and Treasa Howard-Collins are not seeking reelection.
* Patch | Progressives Vs. Conservatives In Elmhurst D205: During the pandemic, Elmhurst school board meetings became battlegrounds over issues such as school shutdowns, masks and critical race theory. Public comments at times became heated. At one meeting, the board recessed for about five minutes when mask mandate backers shouted down a public commenter who refused to wear one.
* Patch | 6 Vie For 3 Seats On Mokena 159 Board Of Education: According to candidate questionnaires submitted to Patch, Tunney is the lone candidate with school governance experience and is the current President of the Mokena PTA. Coleman and Fryer did not respond to multiple requests from Patch to submit questionnaires.
* Patch | 8 Candidates Run For 3 LTHS Board Of Education Positions: Tylka-Shaw and Lewandowski are both incumbent board members. Tylka-Shaw serves as secretary of the board, and was elected in 2019. Lewandowski has served on the board since 1999. According to the District website, Lewandowski is an LTHS alumnus and “wants to provide a safe and secure environment to educate all LTHS students and to continue to work with the administration to establish goals for improving student achievement.”
Statement from Lake County Clerk Anthony Vega on Highland Park School District Lockdown
Waukegan, IL – At approximately 10:55 a.m., Two North Shore District 112 schools, Braeside Elementary School of 150 Pierce Rd, Highland Park, IL 60035 serving Precincts Moraine 222, 228, 229, 230, 231, and 232 and Red Oak Elementary School of 530 Red Oak Ln, Highland Park, IL 60035 serving Precincts Moraine 220, 221, 224, 225, 226, and 227 went into a lockdown status due to heavy police presence at Highland Park High School. The Highland Park Public Library at 494 Laurel Ln., Highland Park, IL, 60035 serving Precincts Moraine 217, 218, 219, and 223 has also gone into lockdown status.
This lockdown has subsequently halted all voter services at these locations at this time. At the point of the lockdown being lifted our office will petition the court to extend voting for the same length of time as the lockdown. All voters currently unable to vote at Braeside Elementary School, Red Oak Elementary School, or Highland Park Public Library may visit the Lake County Clerk’s Office at 18 N County St, Waukegan, IL 60085 to vote if they would prefer not to wait.
Any information regarding the police situation will be addressed by the City of Highland Park and North Shore School District 112. Please direct further questions or concerns to the North Shore School District 112 or Highland Park Police Department.
Please see the below statement from the Highland Park School District:
“Please be advised of a heavy police presence at Highland Park High School. HPHS has been placed on a lockdown due to a report of a student potentially in possession of a gun at school. There are no reported shots fired. Students and school staff should remain in place to facilitate the work of law enforcement to secure the building. The City will provide an update once the building has been secured.
All District 112 Schools are in Secure Building status right now - no one can enter or exit the schools in District 112 until further notice. Students are safe in their classrooms.
Voting at Red Oak and Braeside is being delayed due to the Secure Building status.
We are in direct communication with law enforcement. More information will be forthcoming from D112, the County Clerk and the City.”
* You could hardly get more different results if you tried. As the crosstabs show, this IZQ poll vastly differs with the Victory Research poll on men and on race. VR had Vallas up by 13 points among men. The IZQ poll has them tied, 48-48. VR had Vallas leading among whites 76-19, the IZQ poll has Vallas up by just 10, at 54-44. VR had Johnson up among Black voters 76-20 with 3 percent undecided, but this IZQ poll has Johnson leading 64-22 with 14 undecided. VR had Vallas up 50-43 among Latino voters, while this IZQ poll has Vallas up by 17 points. Also, the VR poll had the two tied among those who had voted and had Vallas leading 50-43 among those who hadn’t yet voted, while this poll had large Johnson leads among early voters and had Vallas leading by just 4 points among those who were waiting until today. And, according to this poll, Vallas is still stuck at 45..
Final IZQ Strategies Poll of the Chicago Mayoral Runoff Election
The Chicago Mayor race is as tight as ever. The last two polls showed: Vallas +4% (Victory Research) Johnson +5% (IZQ Strategies) Here's the new average pic.twitter.com/xnxskmCIh5
As of Sunday, early votes & received mail ballots for the Chicago runoff election (250,375) was 44% of the total ballots of the February election (566,973).
The top "surging" wards for the runoff compared to the February election are: 41st Ward: 57% 11th Ward: 56% 19th Ward: 54% pic.twitter.com/IPEkuIGj5d
First look at Chicago Mayor election turnout by age:
Young people have turned out hard so far for the Brandon Johnson v Paul Vallas runoff (left). Compare it with age group turnout at the same point on Election Day (9 am) in February (right). pic.twitter.com/56JUTTLXuj
Mayor Lightfoot texts with Paul Vallas from election night, when she was trying to concede, and when he reached out in March. “Topic?” pic.twitter.com/Kv1en6Df62
— fyi Paul Vallas is a MAGA republican 🫡 (@cholent_lover) April 4, 2023
* Isabel’s roundup…
* Tribune | Election Day in Chicago: Voters will choose Brandon Johnson or Paul Vallas as city’s next mayor, with a tough job awaiting the winner: Vallas, a 69-year old former schools chief, has long been a critic of the Chicago Teachers Union that Johnson helps lead, asserting the union’s work stoppages during the pandemic harmed children’s well-being and hurt their growth for generations. Johnson, 47, regularly paints Vallas’ approach to public education as “morally bankrupt” for his promotion of private school vouchers and expansion of charters across the country.
* Sun-Times | Chicago Runoff Election 2023: Live results, voter reactions and news updates: Try not to hold your breath for the final outcome. The winner may not be known for days. “I highly doubt either camp will concede on election night because up to 100,000 votes may not be counted when we go to bed on election night,” said pollster Matt Podgorski of M3 Strategies, whose polling correctly placed the top four finishers in Round One of the mayoral sweepstakes within roughly half a percentage point.
* Tribune | Early voting is up in runoff compared to February but overall voter turnout remains unclear: Through Sunday night, about 155,000 people voted early in person, while 95,000 had turned in their mail ballots for a total of nearly 250,000 ballots cast. In the February election, the total number of ballots cast two days before Election Day was a little more than 211,000. After all mail ballots were counted, February turnout was 36%, slightly higher than both rounds of the 2019 election, but lower than the 2011 election and the runoff in 2015, when it was 41%.
* NBC Chicago | 7 City Council Races to Watch in the 2023 Chicago Runoff Election: The race to replace Ald. Roderick Sawyer was closely-watched throughout the campaign, and William Hall and Richard Wooten earned spots in the runoff, finishing just 71 votes apart. Hall was endorsed by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker in the first round of voting, and also received support from the SEIU and Chicago Teachers Union.
* Crain’s | Keep a close eye on these signals in today’s mayoral vote: So far, turnout in early and mail-in ballots has been significantly higher than in the past two mayoral general elections. That likely helps Vallas since Johnson has a much better field operation that Vallas needs to offset by having big numbers of voters turn out on their own. That’s also the main reason why polls and political insiders are giving Vallas a small edge. But if the weather tomorrow is as bad as the weather folks say — damaging storms with high winds and pelting rain are in the forecast — turnout could drop. But if the storms don’t hit until, say, 4 p.m. — or if more people vote early today — it may not matter.
* Politico | The final hours of Chicago’s too-close-to-call mayoral runoff: The issues of crime and policing have dominated the runoff election, which was necessary because no candidate earned a majority of the vote in the first round of voting back in February. Vallas (33 percent) and Johnson (22 percent) finished first and second, respectively, while Lightfoot (17 percent) was eliminated after a third-place finish.
* South Side Weekly Op-Ed| There is No Ethical Path to Voting for Paul Vallas: This election is not rare in having two imperfect candidates squaring off. It is rare because the battle we face is rooted in the eternal American debate about race and our history, and carries huge implications for the future of our country. In this debate, there is no ethical path that allows a vote for Paul Vallas.
* WGN | Police payouts soaring in city of Chicago: The city of Chicago has paid more than $578 million since 2016 in judgments, settlements and legal fees relating to claims of police misconduct. It is a staggering figure but observers say taxpayers aren’t done paying yet. They predict millions of dollars more will be spent as legal cases relating to a notorious former officer wind through the courts.
* Sun-Times | Firefighter killed, 2 others hurt at extra-alarm fire in West Pullman: Pelt joined the Chicago Fire Department in 2005 and was based on the South Side his whole career, according to Nance-Holt. He had celebrated a birthday in March and just walked his older daughter down the aisle. She was on her honeymoon at the time of the incident. Pelt’s younger daughter is 6 years old.
* Chicago Mag | A Very Daley Tour of Bridgeport: What’s the point of being mayor if you can’t guarantee yourself the best police and fire protection? The police station on the corner of Daley’s block housed the limousine that drove him to City Hall every morning and the squad car that guarded the alley behind his house. The police district has relocated to a modern building on Halsted Street, but the firehouse remains.
* WTTW | Family-Owned Chicago Flag Company Has Been Supplying Symbols of Civic Pride for 108 Years: “We were here long before TV, we were here long before radio. W.G.N. Flag and Decorating Company, since 1916 and named after the family. Yeah, unfortunately those media outlets have nothing to stand on. I love ‘em but we were here first,” said Carl “Gus” Porter III. “The company actually started by my great grandfather purchasing a stick flag from a street merchant, walking down the street, and selling it for twice what he paid for it.”
