Chambana Sun

Republican lawmakers in Illinois believe a federal court's ruling validates what they've been saying all along, the new legislative district maps signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker are 'unconstitutional.'

State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) said the court's decision to scrap the redistricting plan "determined very clearly" that the maps violated the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution.

"The ruling made it clear what many of us have been saying for months, but not just Republicans, groups like the League of Women Voters and others who said that Democrats were engaged in a behind-the-scenes closed-door process that used inaccurate data and put the votes of Illinois voters at risk," Barickman said during an Oct. 26 news conference. 

Barickman criticized Pritzker for going against his campaign promise to "stand up for the little guy" by supporting a fair map-making process and vowing to veto one that wasn't fair. 

"I think it's important to remember what the governor said on this issue and others, that he would be different and would stand up for the people of this state, against the political class who were ruling against the people of the state," he said. "What's important is what was revealed just in the last several days which is that the governor is not a bystander in this map-making process. He's inserted himself as an active participant in the map-making process, again contrary to his campaign pledge and his stated desire that he would support something that's independent."

Barickman said voters recognize the broken promises and want to see elected leaders from both sides of the aisle work together fo make the state better.

"Voters want choices, they want fair maps, they want representatives who are accountable to them and Gov. Pritzker and his fellow Democrats have unfortunately prioritized their partisan objectives over the interest of the people of this state," he said during the news conference. 

Republican leaders challenged the maps with a federal lawsuit in June.

The State Journal Register reported that some of the plaintiffs named in the lawsuit include both state Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorn Woods) and state Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs).

A three-judge panel in federal court will hear the three combined lawsuits that challenge the validity and constitutionality of the legislative maps in early December, according to the State Journal Register.