The Sad Trombone Plays for Pritzker After SCOTUS' Redistricting Ruling, and IL GOP Stands to Benefit
While a lot of attention understandably has been given to the red states that have been busy with redistricting maneuvers in the aftermath of the Supreme Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, Republicans in one blue state where there was no map action in the 2026 election cycle have seen some victories of sorts as well.
As RedState readers will recall, and as we referenced earlier Friday, back in the fall of 2025, some Illinois Democrat lawmakers were floating the idea of trying to make their already gerrymandered 14-3 congressional map into a 15-2 map. Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) phonily played the "reluctant warrior" role at the time, saying they "may" act depending on what Indiana did.
Though we know how things played out in Indiana, there was never any real chance for Democrat leaders in Illinois to successfully make map changes anyway, since the Illinois Senate Black Caucus openly expressed that they were not on board with anything that had the potential of "diluting the black vote" - which any new map likely would have done.
READ MORE: Democrats in One Blue State Push Back Against Redistricting Demands From Hakeem Jeffries
The idea ultimately was scrapped. But Illinois Democrats did attempt a redistricting-related move several months later (in April) and just prior to the Callais ruling, calling for an amendment to be put on the ballot that Republicans argued would only lead to what they called more "illegal" districts, as RedState reported at the time:
Lawmakers in Springfield are advancing House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 28, which would rewrite the priority order used to draw legislative districts. The proposal keeps equal population as the top requirement but elevates race-based considerations, including directing mapmakers to create "racial coalition or influence districts," before turning to compactness and contiguity.
In the aftermath of Callais, however, guess what happened? The proposed amendment has been yanked off the table for 2026:
"We want to spend a little bit of time unpacking the Supreme Court decision to make sure we get it right and protect the voting rights of Illinois residents," [Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park] said. "It's much better and much more important to get this correct than to do it quickly. The worst thing that would happen is if we rushed and there were unintended consequences that undermine people's voting rights."
But that means the matter will have to wait until at least 2028, as lawmakers faced a May 3 deadline to approve constitutional amendments for voters to consider in November.
On top of that, Pritzker and the state of Illinois have been sued by a former state lawmaker over the current map in a case that presumably would nullify any possibility of an amendment like the Democrat lawmakers were pushing:
Illinois’ congressional district map is being challenged over what some argue are unconstitutional racial requirements for districts. A former Republican state representative sued Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the State Board of Elections late last week.
Jeanne Ives, a former representative of the state’s 42nd district, brought the case backed by J. Christian Adams, president and general counsel of the Public Interest Legal Foundation.
Filed in the U.S. District Court in the Central District of Illinois, the official complaint claims congressional maps drawn after the 2020 U.S. Census are unconstitutional because the Illinois Voting Rights Act of 2011 mandates the creation of “racial districts.”
In their press release on the lawsuit, Public Interest Legal Foundation wrote (emphasis theirs):
Callais made explicit racial redistricting criteria unconstitutional. If a state law requires the allocation of power based on race, it violates the Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Race may not be used to draw any legislative districts unless a specific violation of the Voting Rights Act is being remedied. This prohibition extends to school districts, state legislative districts, county council, Congressional districts or any line drawing exercise. The Illinois Voting Rights Act of 2011 mandates racial districts.
The full complaint can be read here.
Lastly, the Illinois Policy Institute reminded folks that the exodus of voters from Illinois to red states is likely going to cost them at least one congressional district after the 2030 census is taken:
Illinois Democrats might find it harder to maintain their partisan advantage in U.S. House elections in 2030 redistricting.
The state’s districts are already practically maximized for partisan advantage, and Illinois’ population loss will limit Democrats’ options even more.
Shrinking population is set to cost the state another seat in Congress. Illinois has steadily lost residents in recent years — more than 50,000 every year from 2017 to 2022. The state has only recently seen small gains, due mostly to international migration.
[,,,]
Based on the 2024 presidential election, 54% of Illinois voters are Democrats, yet Democrats hold 82% of Illinois’ U.S. House seats.
With one fewer seat to work with, Illinois Democrats would have a difficult time drawing maps that would eliminate another Republican district. Keeping their current 14 seats would give Democrats over 87% of Illinois’ U.S. House delegation.
It can't be easy being a Republican in the blue parts of Illinois, so you have to take victories and potential victories where you can. The tabling of the amendment in response to Callais was one victory, and the likelihood that they'll have to redraw maps in 2030 to account for losing one congressional district, which could have the net effect of putting some of those other blue districts in play, is another.
And depending on the outcome of the lawsuit against Pritzker, the state's Democrats may indeed have to draw up new maps even sooner than 2030, maps which could conceivably at least make some of the blue districts more competitive for Republicans ahead of the 2028 election.
