State Representative Tony McCombie, addressing concerns about political imbalance at Southern Illinois University, criticized the current partisan composition in Illinois. McCombie, representing the 89th district, which consists of all or parts of Carroll, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Ogle, Stephenson and Winnebago counties, highlighted the disproportionate representation in the state legislature, attributing the skew to gerrymandering.
According to McCombie, despite Republicans garnering 70,000 more votes than Democrats in recent elections, Democrats hold two-thirds of the seats. She also voiced disappointment with House Speaker Emmanuel “Chris” Welch for excluding Republicans from a newly formed public transit working group, calling it a “blatant disregard for bipartisan cooperation.” McCombie remains hopeful that the upcoming November election might bring a few more seats to Republicans, signaling a public desire for change.
