The Illinois Supreme Court recently upheld a lower court’s ruling that blocked Senate Bill 2412, a controversial law signed by Governor Pritzker in May. The bill aimed to halt the practice of slating candidates to fill ballot vacancies for the current election cycle, even as candidates were already collecting petition signatures and rearranging their lives to run for office. Republican lawmakers criticized the bill as an attempt to benefit Democratic incumbents and reduce voter choice in the upcoming election.
Governor Pritzker’s legislative allies petitioned the court to revisit the earlier ruling, but the Illinois Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s decision, declaring the law unconstitutional since it attempted to alter election rules after the election cycle had begun. If the law Pritzker signed had taken effect, it would have prevented numerous candidates from being placed on the ballot in the 2024 general election. The measure drew swift criticism from many, including good government advocates, who viewed it as a blatant power grab by Democratic lawmakers to give vulnerable incumbents an advantage in November.
Under the recent ruling, candidates who had collected the required number of petition signatures by the official deadline will now be placed on the ballot for voter consideration.
Senator Fowler, who opposed the bill in the Senate, expressed relief that the courts rejected yet another attempt by Pritzker’s allies to reduce voters’ choices and manipulate the electoral process.