By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com Governor JB Pritzker announced Tuesday that former deputy governor Christian Mitchell will be his running mate for the 2026 campaign. Pritzker’s selection, made just days after announcing a third campaign for governor, comes from a close circle of trust in Pritzker’s administration. Mitchell previously served
By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com Public employees hired since 2011 must continue to wait for pension reform after Illinois lawmakers declined to take up the issue during the spring session. Lawmakers and labor unions have both expressed concern that benefits for Tier 2 employees – those who entered the public
The Illinois Pharmacists Association (IPhA) celebrates the General Assembly’s passage of HB1697, the Prescription Drug Affordability Act, a landmark achievement in the fight to protect patients, enhance transparency, and preserve access to pharmacy care across Illinois. This legislation was a central focus of governor JB Pritzker’s 2025 State of the
State representative Jed Davis (R-Yorkville) joined legal action to challenge the process utilized by Illinois Democrats to ram through the State’s fiscal year 2026 budget in the middle of the night. “Enough is enough,” said Davis. “For too long, Illinois Democrats have disrespected the institution of the Illinois General Assembly
By Ben Szalinski & Jerry NowickiCapitol News Illinoisnews@capitolnewsillinois.com Giving almost no time for public review, Illinois Democrats pushed through a $55.2 billion budget for next fiscal year late Saturday, bolstering coffers with new taxes on sports bets, nicotine products and businesses. The $55.2 billion spending plan is supported by $55.3
By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillionis.com Standing on his backyard deck Thursday, April 24, the same place where he declared his 1996 candidacy for U.S. Senate, Illinois’ senior senator Dick Durbin reflected on his decision to retire after four decades in Congress. “I’ve done this my way, making decisions based on
By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com When governor JB Pritzker tells audiences how he became interested in politics, it often starts with stories about his mother. As a child growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Pritzker often shares, he’d attend marches, rallies and protests with his mother in support
By Ben Szalinski & Bridgette FoxCapitol News Illinoisnews@capitolnewsillinois.com It’s been just four months since the last election concluded, but another election is on the horizon in Illinois: the April 1 elections for school boards and municipal offices. Though municipal and school board races in Illinois are nonpartisan, voters may see
By Beth Hundsdorfer & Molly ParkerCapitol News Illinoisnews@capitolnewsillinois.com Hundreds rallied Thursday at the Capitol in Springfield to voice their opposition to a bill that would require oversight of families who homeschool their children, a response to concerns that the state offers no restrictions on homeschooling families. The bill, called the
By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com The Donald Trump administration has stopped reimbursing Illinois for a program designed to help farmers and supply fresh food to Illinois food banks. The Illinois Department of Agriculture announced Tuesday that changes to federal funding mean Illinois is missing reimbursements for costs for the Local
Illinois governor JB Pritzker announced the 2025 recipients of the Order of Lincoln, the State’s highest honor for professional achievement and public service. Recipients are Bonnie Blair, Sandra Cisneros, Jeanne Gang, Janice K. Jackson, Carol Marin, and Julieanna L. Richardson. This year’s Lincon Laureates will be honored at the upcoming
By Ben Szalinski, Peter Hancock, & Jerry NowickiCapitol News Illinoisnews@capitolnewsillinois.com An improved revenue forecast is helping ease pressure on state finances as governor JB Pritzker calls for tightened spending to balance the budget without tax increases on everyday Illinoisans. During his annual state of the state and budget address on
By Peter HancockCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced this week he has joined yet another multistate lawsuit against the Donald Trump Administration, this time over its decision to slash funding for university research grants through the National Institutes of Health. It was at least the fourth such
By Jade AubreyCapitol News Illinoisjaubrey@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois lawmakers kicked off their spring legislative session roughly three weeks ago, but lawmakers in the House have already filed more than 1,800 bills that could be acted on before the General Assembly adjourns in May. The vast majority of the ideas won’t make it
By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com Democrats continue to hold a supermajority in the Illinois House thanks to illegally gerrymandered House districts, House Republicans allege in a new lawsuit filed with the Illinois Supreme Court Tuesday. The lawsuit alleges the current House map fails to meet state constitutional requirements that districts
By Ben Szalinski & Peter HancockCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.comphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com State agencies, nonprofit organizations and a host of other entities that rely on federal funding were thrown into chaos Tuesday following the release of a White House memo that froze – at least temporarily – the distribution of all federal grants, loans
By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com It’s been 18 months since Karina Gonzalez and her 15-year-old daughter Daniela were shot and killed on Fourth of July weekend at their Chicago home, allegedly by her husband. Gonzalez had filed for an order of protection from her husband just two weeks before her
By Jerry NowickiCapitol News Illinoisjnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinoisans can now vote on whether they want a new state flag. The Illinois Secretary of State’s office officially opened the voting portal on Friday, and votes will be accepted through Feb. 14. Voters can choose from 10 designs for a new flag, the current
With the winter heating season kicking off, Illinois State representative Jed Davis condemned the staggering impracticality of replacing the state’s coal-fired power plants with “clean” energy by 2045, calling the current law “an alarming disregard for Illinois’ energy costs and land-use realities.” Using solar farms as an example of “clean”
By Atmika IyerMedill Illinois News Bureaufor Capitol News Illinoisatmikaiyer2025@u.northwestern.edu Illinois lawmakers in early January could consider easing requirements for residents to change their names, a move proponents say will reduce risks for victims of domestic abuse, transgender residents, and others. The measure must clear the full Senate in the first
