Monday, Oct 27, 2025 – Posted by Isabel Miller

* Subscribers know more. National Politico this morning…

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is scheduled to visit Illinois on Monday to talk to members of the Illinois Black Caucus about redrawing the state’s congressional map. Some of them have been outspoken against the idea, fearing it will dilute Black political power.

Jeffries will have to address those concerns quickly: Illinois lawmakers are back in Springfield this week for the annual fall veto session, and redistricting could get added to the agenda.

* Punchbowl…

The Illinois Senate Black Caucus, via its chair, state Sen. Willie Preston, issued a public warning to Jeffries that it won’t support a map that dilutes Black voting population in historically Black districts. Preston is running for Rep. Robin Kelly’s (D-Ill.) seat, one of those districts. Kelly is running in the Democratic Senate primary.

Jeffries’ trip to Chicago is an acknowledgment that support from Black lawmakers will be crucial toward passing a new map. Preston will also be in the meeting today, per a person familiar with his plans.

Illinois has three historically Black districts held by Kelly and Democratic Reps. Danny Davis and Jonathan Jackson. Black lawmakers have voiced concerns that squeezing another seat out of the state could lower the number of Black voters in those districts, potentially hurting Black representation.

The state currently has 14 Democrats and three Republicans. Democrats hope to draw out one more Republican to counter President Donald Trump’s push to gerrymander in red states.

* Governor Pritzker was asked about the meeting this morning…

Reporter: There’s been reports that Hakeem Jeffries is going to be in Illinois today the lobby on the redistricting issue. What have you heard? Where you stand on that? What do you know?

Pritzker: I haven’t heard any more than I think last time we spoke about it. I found out that the Leader Jeffries was coming just over the weekend. I know he’s going to be speaking with members of the Black Caucus, but I’m not sure what that conversation will be like.

Reporter: Where do you stand there? What do you what do you think in the next week, in the last week of veto session. Do you think anything’s realistic as far as passing that could benefit Democrats?

Pritzker: Oh, sure. I mean, I think it’s possible. And again, this is you know all about the fact that Donald Trump is now trying to, well, rig the game by going state by state, and asking his friends, the Republican governors and Republican legislators to do mid decade redistricting. So that’s something we’re all going to have to look at during the process here. But it doesn’t have to happen during veto session. It could happen after that, but right now there’s just a lot of conversation going on.

* Related…

* AP | Indiana calling special session for redistricting: Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has signed a proclamation calling for a special session to redraw Indiana’s congressional boundaries starting on Nov. 3. In a statement, Braun said: “I am calling a special legislative session to protect Hoosiers from efforts in other states that seek to diminish their voice in Washington and ensure their representation in Congress is fair. I am also asking the legislature to conform Indiana’s tax code with new federal tax provisions to ensure stability and certainty for taxpayers and tax preparers for 2026 filings.”

* NYT | In Battle for Congress, Virginia Democrats to Begin Votes to Redraw Maps: Virginia lawmakers are expected to assemble on Monday to start a process that could redraw the state’s congressional districts for the 2026 midterm election. Virginia is the latest state to plunge into the fight over control of Congress, where Republicans hold a tightrope-slim majority and launched a surprise effort this summer to shore up their control by pushing Republican-led states to redraw congressional districts ahead of schedule.

* WVWU | Ohio Redistricting Commission, tasked with approving bipartisan map, can’t agree on rules: Critics have been saying the state’s redistricting process is broken. An effort to overhaul it last year failed, but there are new calls for changes. As the process to draw a new 15-district congressional map moves into a second phase, it’s been fraught with disagreement over the most basic parts. That was evident in the first meeting of the Ohio Redistricting Commission this week. At its first meeting on Tuesday, the seven members of the commission were divided on the basic rules that should used for the meetings. Co-chair Brian Stewart (R-Asheville) wanted to adopt one parliamentary process.

* NYT | Lawsuit Plunges New York Into the National Gerrymandering Fight: A suit filed by an election law firm contends that the state’s 11th Congressional District, represented by a Republican, is drawn in a way that disenfranchises Black and Latino voters.