Mapping in the Dark

Redistricting Illinois in 2011: Politics as Usual Under a Facade of Transparency

Democratic leaders in the General Assembly pledged that their redrawing of state House, Senate and congressional district lines in 2011 would be transparent and open to the public. But when it came time to draw the maps, majority Democrats, like their predecessors, once again relegated citizens to the sidelines, pushing through maps that furthered their political goals but which few residents had time to see, let alone review.

Read "Mapping in the Dark," ICPR's special report chronicling the lack of transparency in the 2011 remapping and our recommendations for how to ensure that 10 years from now, residents are not shut out of this important process again.

Dozens of residents and interest groups joined ICPR in calling for lawmakers to provide meaningful opportunities for residents to watchdog and participate in the redrawing of state legislative and congressional boundaries. ICPR has catalogued these calls, as reflected in the transcripts of redistricting committee hearings which have been made available to the public thus far. Check out this spreadsheet which logs each of these comments.

On 10 different occasions over nearly two years, ICPR testified before of House and Senate committees about the need for meaningful public participation and involvement in the redistricting process. Copies of all of our testimony are available for review here.