Illinois Politics

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, Democratic U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, whose 13th District includes a portion of the Metro East, reflects on her first 100 days in office.

Several state and local officials have since been sued in federal and state courts by plaintiffs, including residents, gun shop owners and organizations that oppose the law.

Lawmakers will return to Springfield on April 18 for a final one-month stretch in which the measures can be amended, defeated or sent to the governor.

Gov. JB Pritzker, state legislators, mayors and other officials gathered at the airport Thursday to spotlight the investment.

Representatives were racing to beat a Friday deadline to get bills out of the chamber, with about two months left in the spring legislative session.

Recently, Stuart had to cancel a “constituent coffee” event in Collinsville because of threats related to this bill.

Ranked choice voting has a long history in U.S. elections at the municipal level. But it has become more widely adopted in modern times, including in several states and dozens of municipalities.

Illinois' high court put the SAFE-T Act criminal justice reform — short for Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today — on hold in December just hours before it was scheduled to take effect. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard arguments in the case.

Illinois workers previously have not been guaranteed paid time off for sick leave, child care, medical appointments or any other reason.

The future of cash bail in Illinois is in the hands of the state’s Supreme Court.