Illinois

Racial Representation Of the voting population of 4,708,520, 15.1% are black and 10.1% are Latino.  Under the current 19-district system, black voters make up the majority in three districts but Latino voters do not make up the majority in any.  There are currently three black and one Latino representatives.  Under the proposed super districting plan, black voters are well-positioned to elect two candidates of choice.  Black voters in coalition with Latino and white voters are well-positioned to elect a candidate of choice in Super District E, and could elect a candidate in Super District E.  Latino voters in coalition with white and other minority voters are well-positioned to elect a candidate of choice.  Latino voters with crossover support are well-positioned to elect two candidates of choice.  Racial minority voters supporting a candidate with crossover appeal could, in coalition with white voters, elect a candidate of choice in Super District C.
Political Analysis In the 2000 Presidential election, Al Gore won Illinois with 55% of the vote over George W. Bush's 43%.  The state's overall Democratic partisanship is 56.5%.  Under the current 19-district system, nine districts can be considered Democratic, eight districts can be considered Republican, and two districts can be considered competitive.  Under the proposed super districting plan, voters would likely elect nine Democrats, five Republicans, and five representatives who could come from either party.

 

SUPER DISTRICT A - FIVE SEATS
     

            2000 Presidential Vote

    % Black % Latino
State CD Bush (%) Gore (%) Other (%) Total Origin Origin
Illinois 12 116724 (43.4%) 144548 (53.8%) 7634 (2.8%) 268906 16.3% 1.8%
Illinois 15 148176 (54.0%) 116436 (42.5%) 9616 (3.5%) 274228 5.7% 2.2%
Illinois 17 119563 (43.6%) 146548 (53.5%) 7807 (2.9%) 273918 7.2% 3.7%
Illinois 18 159475 (54.0%) 128411 (43.5%) 7464 (2.5%) 295350 6.4% 1.5%
Illinois 19 164541 (56.1%) 121210 (41.3%) 7621 (2.6%) 293372 3.5% 1.1%
Total   708479 (50.4%) 657153 (46.7%) 40142 (2.9%) 1405774 7.7% 2.0%

Winning Percentage:

16.7%
Voting Rights Analysis: Black voters supporting a candidate with crossover appeal could, in coalition with white and other minority voters, elect a candidate of choice.
District Partisanship: 48.3% This super district would likely elect two Democrats and two
Republicans with one swing seat.

 

SUPER DISTRICT B - FIVE SEATS
     

            2000 Presidential Vote

    % Black % Latino
State CD Bush (%) Gore (%) Other (%) Total Origin Origin
Illinois 8 131967 (55.5%) 98664 (41.5%) 6954 (2.9%) 237585 3.2% 10.8%
Illinois 10 123982 (46.9%) 134149 (50.8%) 6097 (2.3%) 264288 5.3% 12.3%
Illinois 11 128280 (49.6%) 122979 (47.6%) 7269 (2.8%) 258528 7.8% 6.7%
Illinois 14 129745 (54.4%) 101369 (42.5%) 7428 (3.1%) 238542 4.6% 18.5%
Illinois 16 141878 (53.9%) 113020 (43.0%) 8163 (3.1%) 263061 5.3% 6.5%
Total   655852 (52.0%) 570181 (45.2%) 35911 (2.8%) 1261944 5.3% 10.8%

Winning Percentage:

16.7%
Voting Rights Analysis: Latino voters in coalition with white and other minority voters are well-positioned to elect a candidate of choice.
District Partisanship: 46.8% This super district would likely elect two Democrats and two
Republicans with one swing seat.

 

SUPER DISTRICT C - THREE SEATS
     

            2000 Presidential Vote

    % Black % Latino
State CD Bush (%) Gore (%) Other (%) Total Origin Origin
Illinois 6 126254 (53.3%) 103616 (43.8%) 6945 (2.9%) 236815 2.7% 12.5%
Illinois 9 71064 (30.8%) 155529 (67.4%) 4331 (1.9%) 230924 10.7% 11.5%
Illinois 13 148621 (55.2%) 113450 (42.1%) 7166 (2.7%) 269237 4.9% 5.5%
Total   345939 (46.9%) 372595 (50.6%) 18442 (2.5%) 736976 6.0% 9.6%

Winning Percentage:

25%
Voting Rights Analysis: Minority voters supporting a candidate with crossover appeal could, in coalition with white voters, elect a candidate of choice.
District Partisanship: 52.2% This super district would likely elect one Democrat and one
Republican with one swing seat.

 

SUPER DISTRICT D - THREE SEATS
     

            2000 Presidential Vote

    % Black % Latino
State CD Bush (%) Gore (%) Other (%) Total Origin Origin
Illinois 4 23809 (20.3%) 93266 (79.7%) - - 117075 3.7% 74.5%
Illinois 5 73793 (34.0%) 143106 (66.0%) - - 216899 2.2% 23.0%
Illinois 7 38196 (16.0%) 199064 (83.2%) 1985 (0.8%) 239245 61.6% 5.8%
Total   135798 (23.7%) 435436 (76.0%) 1985 (0.3%) 573219 27.3% 26.3%

Winning Percentage:

25%
Voting Rights Analysis: Black voters are well-positioned to elect a candidate of choice.  Even though Latino voters are above the victory threshold, Latino voters would likely need crossover support to elect a candidate of choice.
District Partisanship: 77.6% This super district would likely elect two Democrats with one
swing seat.

 

SUPER DISTRICT E - THREE SEATS
     

            2000 Presidential Vote

    % Black % Latino
State CD Bush (%) Gore (%) Other (%) Total Origin Origin
Illinois 1 39400 (15.5%) 213244 (83.7%) 2097 (0.8%) 254741 65.2% 4.8%
Illinois 2 41005 (16.5%) 204372 (82.5%) 2455 (1.0%) 247832 62.0% 10.4%
Illinois 3 91471 (40.1%) 131650 (57.7%) 4913 (2.2%) 228034 5.8% 21.3%
Total   171876 (23.5%) 549266 (75.2%) 9465 (1.3%) 730607 45.6% 11.8%

Winning Percentage:

25%
Voting Rights Analysis: Black voters are well-positioned to elect a candidate of choice.  Black voters in coalition with Latino and white voters are well-positioned to elect a second candidate of choice.
District Partisanship: 76.8% This super district would likely elect two Democrats with one
swing seat.

 

This proposal is based on the current congressional districts of Illinois.  Because current congressional districts are often the results of gerrymandering, the proposed super district boundaries are not as smooth and nice-looking as they could be in a similar proposal that made use of sub-congressional district data.