A former state lawmaker’s campaign committee was not aware it couldn’t spend $225,109 on personal vehicles, according to Illinois State Board of Elections members. That lawmaker now oversees public spending for the state.

Democracy depends on giving voters choices, but in Illinois nearly half the seats in the state legislature are filled without giving voters more than one name. A choice of one is no choice.

The Illinois congressional map proposal released by Democrats has districts that are far from compact, snaking to catch and avoid populations. Republicans label it the ‘Nancy Pelosi Protection Plan.’

Nearly a year and a half after IDES closed job centers statewide, the unemployment agency began reopening offices for in-person assistance. So far 13 offices have reopened, with only one in Chicago.

On average, more than 4.7 million voting-age Illinoisans live in districts where there was only one option for the state House on the ballot, undermining their representation. Roughly half of all Illinois House races were uncontested under Illinois’ gerrymandered 2011 district map.

The Illinois General Assembly voted for a decade to eliminate annual cost-of-living adjustments for lawmaker salaries after the Great Recession. Now, former state lawmakers are suing the state to put that money right back into politicians’ pockets.