Independent Maps Halfway to Goal of 600,000 Petition Signatures for Redistricting Reform Amendment

CHICAGO, Sept. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The non-partisan Independent Maps coalition announced it is more than halfway to its goal of collecting 600,000 petition signatures for a state constitutional amendment to create a non-partisan independent commission responsible for drawing state legislative districts.

"In less than five months, more than 300,000 Illinoisans signed petitions to put this important amendment before voters in 2016, and that puts us halfway to our goal of 600,000 signatures," said Dennis FitzSimons, Chair of Independent Maps.

"Because entrenched political interests don't want to give Illinoisans an opportunity to vote on this amendment, we know they will challenge the validity of some of our petition signatures," FitzSimons said. "To be absolutely certain we will meet the Illinois Constitution's requirement of 290,216 valid signatures, we're going to collect more than twice that number. Defenders of the current partisan system will not be able to overcome those numbers.

"We're ahead of schedule, and that is thanks to the hard work of volunteers giving up weekends and evenings to collect signatures and to voters who signed the petition because they are fed up with the results of rigged legislative maps," FitzSimons said.

"Voters are frustrated and feel their voices are not being heard in the General Assembly," said Cynthia Canary, Executive Director of Independent Maps. "The discontent is real, and it stems in part from the fact that 60 percent of the legislators elected last year didn't have anyone running against them. When legislative districts are designed to maximize partisan advantage, the likelihood of true competitive elections is minimized. Partisan maps discourage competition and give us legislators who cruise into office without having to debate a challenger or even listen to a single voter."

Visit www.MapAmendment.org to read full news release.

Paid for by Support Independent Maps.  A copy of our report filed with the State Board of Elections is (or will be) available on the Board's official website (www.elections.il.gov) or for purchase from the Illinois State Board of Elections, Springfield, Illinois.

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SOURCE Independent Maps

Related Links

http://www.mapamendment.org

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