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New U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by Illinois Policy
Institute shows since 2020, 84% of all Illinois communities have
lost population with small towns being hit the hardest. More
than 900 of the state’s 1,294 communities of roughly 10,000
population lost residents over the last five years. Many of
those leaving cite high taxes as a driving force for them
deciding to walk away.
“Democrats haven't recognized two letters that they seem not to
understand,” McLaughlin told The Center Square. “It's the letter
N and the letter O. They have not said ‘no’ to any of these
social programs, to any of the social experiments. All they've
been doing is taking our taxes and funding at twice the rate of
inflation. They're addicted to spending and there isn't enough
money this year to make all of their constituents and lobbyists
happy.”
McLaughlin said it’s not just smaller cities in Illinois seeing
people leave, Chicago also lost more than 27,000 residents in
2024 compared to April 2020 levels.
Across the city, the downward spiral comes in spite of an
ongoing influx of international migrants that has seen at least
240,000 settle in the area over the last five years, even
increasing the city’s population by roughly 22,000 residents in
2024.
McLaughlin insists options he and other Republicans have already
put forth could make all the difference.
“If you listen to the governor, he likes to believe that we are
a thriving, upwardly mobile state for all residents and the
outmigration is evident that, not only is he wrong, but his
identity politics and his social engineering programs are having
absolutely no impact on changing the lives of everyday
Illinoisans,” he said. “The spending that we are doing needs to
be going to how to alleviate property taxes, business taxes, and
regulation.”
As recently as 2019, polling from NPR Illinois and the
University of Illinois found more than six out of every 10
residents thought about leaving the state with high taxes
fueling their thinking.
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