Rauner: Political mapping system 'rigged'
Gov. Bruce Rauner on Friday renewed his push for lawmakers to change the way Illinois draws its political boundaries.
He made the comments after the Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday rejected an effort to put a question on the November ballot in an attempt to make such a change.
Rauner, a Republican, called the state's existing political maps drawn by Democrats "rigged."
Rauner last year called the state's highest court part of a "corrupt system." Asked whether Thursday's decision is part of what he perceives as the problem, Rauner didn't answer directly but focused on trying to get lawmakers to approve changes in how maps are drawn. Currently, lawmakers redraw the maps once a decade based on Census results, giving the dominant party a chance to draw districts to its advantage.
"Our entire system, our entire system, is broken," Rauner said. "And you can see it. Highest property taxes in America. Massive job losses."
Rauner appeared alongside a bipartisan collection of statewide officials and state lawmakers at a downstate event.
A divided Illinois Supreme Court narrowly ruled Thursday that the ballot initiative seeking to give legislative mapmaking power to an independent commission instead of lawmakers didn't meet constitutional muster. It's the second failed attempt to overhaul redistricting by petition in two years.