North Cook News

John Foley, deputy GOP committeeman for the Evanston Republican Organization, said Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s support for Texas Democrats fleeing their legislature exposes hypocrisy in a state with heavily gerrymandered maps.

Foley said Pritzker welcomed Texas lawmakers escaping GOP redistricting efforts, while Illinois’ own legislative maps limit competition and entrench one-party rule.

Though Texas Democrats returned home after two weeks, Foley said Illinois’ deeper democratic dysfunction remains unaddressed, raising questions about accountability in the state.

“The way Illinois has been gerrymandered, they have completely suppressed all forms of democracy in Illinois,” Foley told North Cook News. “The way the maps are gerrymandered is an insult to anybody who has any modicum of critical thinking.”

Foley called Illinois’ political system “an embarrassment.”

“Illinois, it suppresses democracy. I mean, it’s stating the obvious,” he said.

He referenced the June “No Kings” rally in Evanston, which protested President Trump but, in Foley’s view, ignored Illinois’ political suppression.

“So the idea that this ‘No Kings’ on a national basis and yet on a state basis, Illinois is run as a ‘No Kings’ state,” Foley said.

Foley described Illinois’ heavily gerrymandered 9th Congressional District, which stretches from Evanston to McHenry County, narrowing to a few tenths of a mile in places, diluting voters’ influence.

“In the 9th congressional district their vote doesn't mean anything,” Foley said.

Democrat U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky has represented the 9th District since 1999. She won re-election in 2024 with 68.4% of the vote against Republican Seth Alan Cohen.

Over her last six general elections (2012–2024), Schakowsky’s margin of victory averaged about 34 percentage points.

“There’s no denying that Evanston is a very liberal community,” Foley said. “But the people are being gerrymandered out.”

Foley also pointed to Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District as heavily gerrymandered.

“Robin Kelly’s district runs from the South Side of Chicago to Danville and Pontiac,” Foley said. “The people of Pontiac and Danville are the ones whose right to vote has been taken away. They get to vote, but realistically, their vote doesn’t matter.”

Democrat U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly has held the 2nd District since 2013. She has won her last six elections by an average margin of about 47 points and is running to replace U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.

Foley expressed frustration with public ignorance and media silence.

“Where’s the Daily Herald?” he said. “As the saying goes, silence is violence. Where’s WGN?”

He addressed Pritzker’s recent media appearances, including an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press where Pritzker called concerns over Illinois’ maps a “distraction,” and a joking remark on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that the maps were drawn by “kindergartners.”

“Pritzker saying what he says is comical,” Foley said. “But he has billions of dollars, which I don’t begrudge, so he can just blow past this. And should he decide to run for president, which is who knows since he’s three years away, he’s got enough money that maybe he can buy off all the media outlets to avoid accountability for his leadership and stewardship as governor of Illinois.”

Rejecting political labels, Foley urged a focus on “common sense” and civic awareness.

“I’ve told people to stop using the word conservative and instead use the phrase common sense,” he said. “It’s common sense that a gerrymandered district suppresses democracy.”

While California Democrats plan an off-year redistricting to counteract Texas’, Illinois remains a longstanding epicenter of partisan gerrymandering.

The legacy traces back to former House Speaker Michael Madigan, who is set to begin serving a 7.5-year prison sentence for public corruption in October.

In 2016, a Madigan-aligned Illinois Supreme Court justice blocked a “Fair Maps” amendment from reaching voters.

State GOP leaders and watchdog groups continue pushing for reform, including lawsuits challenging Illinois’ maps and calls for independent commissions. However, Democrats in Springfield have repeatedly blocked such efforts.

“The people of downstate Illinois, their votes have been suppressed,” Foley said.