Testimony

April 29, 2010

CHANGE Illinois! fact sheet on minority voting rights in Fair Map and SJRCA 121 proposals

In an attempt to bolster support for SJRCA 121, the Senate Democrats' legislative redistricting proposal, some have claimed SJRCA 121 is superior to Illinois Fair Map because of its minotiry voter protections.

The realist it that both Illinois Fair Map and the Democrats' plan would fully protect minorities. Both would echo the substantive protections of the federal Voting Rights Act expressly in the Illinois Constitution, for the first time...

Read the full fact sheet


April 27, 2010

Sharod Gordon of the TARGET Area Development Corporation testifies to House Judiciary - Civil Law Committee

...Today, I am speaking to you on behald of CHANGE Illinois!...we favor a redistricting amendment that advance the common good, ensures voter voices are amplified, promoted diversity, expands opportunities for representation and creates a transparent and fair system for mapmaking...

Read Sharod Gordon's full statement


April 19, 2010

Deborah Harrington speaks at Fair Map press conference on behalf of CHANGE Illinois!

I'm pleased to be here today...

We've examined the two competing plans -- SJRCA 121 and Illinois Fair Map -- and only Fair Map meets our goal of advancing the common good, ensuring voter voices are amplified, promoting diversity, expanding opportunities for representation, and creating a transparent and fair system for mapmaking...

Read Deborah Harrington's full statement


April 12, 2010

Hoy McConnell Testifies to the Senate Redistricting Committee

Chairman Raoul and members of the Senate Redistricting Committee, good afternoon and thank you for this opportunity. I'm Hoy McConnell, Executive Director of Business and Professional People for the Public Interest. Today, I am speaking to you on behalf of CHANGE Illinois!, of which I am a member of the Steering Committee.

CHANGE Illinois! is an independent and non-partisan coalition of diverse interests (over 2 million strong) that came together last year to advocate for political reform. We chose initially to focus on the issue of campaign contribution limits, fully recognizing that real political reform involves more than a single issue. Now, many of us in the CHANGE coalition have agreed to turn our attention to changes in the redistricting system that match our principles and goals...

Read Hoy McConnell's full statement


April 12, 2010

Cindi Canary of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform Testifies at Senate Redistricting Hearing

These should be no question that Illinois needs to reform the way legislative district boundaries are drawn in Illinois, and the Senate's convening of committee hearings in recent months and the introcution of various proposed changes indicate to us that the Senate shares our belief that the current system needs major changes...

Read Cindi Canary's full statement