Voting rights group warns CA redistricting push could undermine trust in
IL
[November 10, 2025]
By Catrina Barker | The Center Square contributor
(The Center Square) – California Gov. Gavin Newsom is urging states like
Illinois to redraw congressional maps, but voting rights group CHANGE
Illinois warns that such pressure risks undermining transparency and
public trust in the redistricting process.
In his Proposition 50 victory speech, Newsom criticized President Donald
Trump and urged states to “meet the moment.”
“We need our friends in New York, Illinois, and Colorado,” said Newsom.
“We need to see other states, the remarkable leaders that have been
doing remarkable things, meet this moment head on and recognize what
we’re up against in 2026.”
Illinois ethics advocates quickly raised concerns that outside pressure
could undermine public trust. Ryan Tolley, executive director of
Chicago-based voting rights group CHANGE Illinois, said the state’s 2021
congressional maps are already “highly partisan gerrymandered.”
“For Illinois, the challenge is that our maps are already heavily drawn
to favor one party,” Tolley said. “Any attempt to redraw them would
likely come at the expense of Black voting power and diminish
representation for Black communities, since creating a new district
would probably split voters further in Cook County and Chicago.”
Tolley also noted that redrawing congressional maps outside of the
normal post-census cycle is highly unusual.
“Maps typically aren’t redrawn unless there’s a lawsuit or federal
requirements, such as compliance with the Voting Rights Act,” he said.
Calls from outside leaders, including House Democratic Leader Hakeem
Jeffries, may increase pressure on Illinois lawmakers, but Tolley said
the state has so far resisted.
“For Illinois, if leaders keep threatening to gerrymander our maps in
response to Indiana, officials there might decide it’s not worth it
because Illinois would just offset them,” said Tolley. “Some of that may
just be political rhetoric meant to discourage Republican-led states
from moving forward with their own remaps.”
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Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker speaks with supporters at a Kamala
Harris for President campaign phone bank in Phoenix, Ariz., Sept.
28, 2024. Photo: Gage Skidmore / Flickr /CC BY-SA 2.0 / Cropped from
Original
Tolley suggested restoring confidence through reforms like a state
Voting Rights Act or an independent redistricting commission.
“There are a lot of ways Illinois leaders could turn a bad situation
into an opportunity to rebuild public trust,” Tolley said. “They
could pass real reforms to make redistricting less political or give
voters tools to protect themselves from disenfranchisement,
especially from racial gerrymandering.”
Texas’ latest redistricting push has renewed debate over the Voting
Rights Act after the Department of Justice quietly dropped a related
lawsuit in March 2025.
The Department of Justice sued Texas in 2021, alleging its maps
diluted minority voting power, but the case ended before any ruling.
While some framed their redistricting actions as a response to
federal scrutiny, others pointed to openly partisan motives.
“President Trump very publicly said Texas officials should go find
Republicans five more seats,” Tolley noted, suggesting the process
was more about political gain than compliance with voting
protections.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing a Louisiana case that
could weaken or strike down Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act,
which bans racial discrimination in redistricting. With that law’s
future uncertain, states like New York and Colorado have passed
their own versions to protect minority voters.
Any effort to redraw congressional maps in Illinois would face
significant logistical challenges, Tolley said, including possible
adjustments to the primary election schedule. Lawmakers could
theoretically act in a special session without a ballot referendum. |
