By Jerry Nowicki One day after State House speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, announced a suspension, but not a withdrawal, of his campaign for another term as speaker, a State representative who has been accused of being a staunch Madigan protector has launched a bid for the post. Rep. Emanuel “Chris”
January 7, 2021Dear editor; January 6 was a dark day in the history of the United States of America. The activities on Capitol Hill should have been a procedural exercise to finalize the 2020 election. Indeed, our Nation’s Capitol was attacked by domestic terrorists seeking to invalidate the will of
By Marilyn Huntman GieseAurora In 1997 Aurora was a city where murder and gang violence thrived. Many asked me why I moved here. The truth is, I didn’t know any better. But today, Aurora has a proud name and a wealth of community and city services that have bonded its
By Sarah Mansur The Illinois House Executive Committee advanced an election bill that would make permanent some of the expansions to mail-in voting that were passed for the 2020 general election. The bill would require election authorities to accept mail-in ballots that were submitted without sufficient postage and allow election
Kane County Clerk John A. Cunningham announced early voting sites for the consolidated primary election February 23. Early voting will begin Thursday, Jan. 14, at the Clerk’s office, 719 S. Batavia Avenue, Bldg. B, in Geneva, and at the Aurora satellite office, 5 E. Downer Place. Hours are 8:30 a.m.
The dance of democracy continues this year with the once-a-decade ritual of drawing new State legislative and congressional district lines in Illinois and across the Nation. In two-thirds of the states, including Illinois, the legislators draw the lines. It means the party in power draws maps that favor incumbents and
Monday, congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) issued the following statement on the Article of Impeachment introduced in the U.S. House charging president Donald Trump with incitement of insurrection: “The facts are clear: The president of the United States incited a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn
By Sarah Mansur Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs director Linda Chapa LaVia resigned Monday, more than two months after a COVID-19 outbreak was first reported at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home that has killed more than a quarter of the facility’s residents. Chapa LaVia, from Aurora, is the second high-profile departure
By Jason Crane Forty Civilian Review Board semifinalists were announced at the Aurora city government City Council meeting Tuesday, through the Zoom video conference platform. Communications director Clayton Muhammad presented a Civilian Review Board update. The establishment of the City of Aurora’s Civilian Review Board (CRB) is a result of
Debbie Smith began her career as a preschool teacher to put her double-major in education to efficient use. So, here’s a pop quiz in math: Question: What’s the difference between December 31, 2020 and August 21, 1987? Answer: 12,187 days. And despite weekends, holidays and vacations sprinkled throughout, not one
By John W. Whitehead and Nisha Whitehead It is what we have been reduced to: A violent mob. A Nation on the brink of martial law. A populace under house arrest. A techno-corporate state wielding its power to immobilize huge swaths of the country. And a U.S. Constitution in tatters.
By Peter Hancock Republican Party members in the Illinois House said Tuesday that they hope to use legislation, instead of a constitutional amendment, to change the way State legislative and congressional district lines are redrawn every 10 years. The so-called “fair maps” proposal would authorize the General Assembly to set
All city of Naperville government buildings will remain closed to the public until Monday, Feb. 1, in a continued effort to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the community. City services will be offered during this closure. First responders with the Naperville Police and Fire Departments will continue to
Written in quill pen, not literally; it was 1965, my master’s thesis was about “Leaderless Politics: The Illinois Republican Party.” Not much has changed. That was an era when party organization mattered. My thesis was that when Republicans lost control of the governorship, the party became leaderless. Not much has
By Jason Crane The North Aurora Village Board meeting Monday, through the Zoom video conference platform included Village president Dale Berman’s notice that the January 18 Board meeting will be his last. Berman recently won a seat on the Kane County Board for District 2. He has been the Village
By Jason Crane At the Aurora city government Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday, through the Zoom video conference platform, City attorney Rick Veenstra gave an update to the City’s Ethics Ordinance including the creation of an ethics hotline. In January 2019, the City Council began to review the City’s
By John W. Whitehead The Christmas story of a baby born in a manger is a familiar one. The Roman Empire, a police state in its own right, had ordered that a census be conducted. Joseph and his pregnant wife, Mary, traveled to the little town of Bethlehem so that
By Raymon Troncoso Illinois reported its third consecutive day with more than 100 COVID-19 deaths Tuesday. Meanwhile, most statistics the State uses to measure progress in combatting the coronavirus ticked up slightly. Tuesday, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported 5,644 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in Illinois,
By Sarah Mansur When a new year begins in Illinois, there typically are dozens if not hundreds of new laws going into effect. Not this year. Just like so many other things in this year, the legislative Spring session was stunted by COVID-19. Once the global pandemic reached Illinois in
December 28, 2020Dear editor; As we come to the end of a truly challenging year, I extend to all a joyous holiday season. Many of us have experienced illness, financial hardship, isolation, and various adversities, but we made it through 2020. Good riddance! Despite these challenging times we faced together,
