What America needs to learn from the oligarchy in Illinois

(Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay)

[Editor's note: This story originally was published by Real Clear Wire.]

By Matt Paprocki
Real Clear Wire

Big money has determined the past three gubernatorial election outcomes in Illinois. Gone are the days of the Illinois political machine and blue-dog Democrats who built patronage armies and rank-and-file majorities. Illinois politics is now, more than ever, a dollars and cents game run by an oligarchy of rich insiders.

That means Illinois is on its way to being a state where special interests can outweigh the voices of the everyday people – unless the people do something about it.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker makes up the first half of that elite group. The wealthiest sitting politician in the country, Pritzker has broken records by spending a total of $323 million on his past two gubernatorial campaigns – approximately $70 per vote in 2022. Then, he spent millions more to ensure which opponent would win the Republican primary: Darren Bailey, a downstate, conservative farmer perceived as easier to beat than moderate Richard Irvin.

If any one person can buy not only their candidacy but also buy their opponent, what true voice do voters have?

Then, there’s the second half of the Illinois oligarchy: special-interest government unions. Big labor spent over $16 million to win on Amendment 1, a constitutional change that elevates government collective bargaining agreements over state law, effectively outsourcing the legislative branch to a group of unelected political insiders who stand to benefit financially from this kind of power.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (screenshot)

The presence of this rich and powerful establishment is concerning for its potential implications. Activist government unions across the country now have a model to follow in Amendment 1: create similar laws and usurp the people’s legislative power in other states. Tim Drea of the AFL-CIO has said there’s already been “a lot of interest on this amendment from other states.”

Pritzker’s name, too, has been thrown around for the 2024 presidency – encouraged by the governor’s speeches around the country and donations to Democratic candidates, all signs of a potential presidential contender. While Pritzker has so far denied a presidential run, he would have elevated himself to that position by directly and indirectly buying offices that gave him his political experience.

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This paints a dismal portrait for American democracy. But change is possible, even in Illinois, when people are empowered. In the 2022 election, 79 Illinoisans from all walks of life ran for office and brought competition to the Illinois General Assembly, the most in at least two decades. They ran for a simple, democratic reason: to offer voters a choice in historically uncontested Statehouse races. They offered a change from the Illinois norm of only 50% of Illinois’ House of Representative districts seeing two candidates on the ballot.

It worked. Voter turnout was 3.8 million – the second-highest level for a gubernatorial general election since 1998. Over 425,000 voters cast a ballot in contested races in Chicago – nearly 170,000 more votes than in uncontested races in Chicago. The candidates planted a seed for broader change in Illinois’ elections and for other candidates to build on in the future.

The only way we’re going to stop big money and entrenched partnerships such as the Illinois oligarchy from stealing our elections and rights is to run ourselves. Start small. Run for school board or another local office. Volunteer for political campaigns. Get involved.

Because as much as we all like to hate on money and power in elections, true change starts with us – and not with words, but with actions.

Matt Paprocki is president and CEO of the Illinois Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization.

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