What is the current Illinois congressional map established in 2021?
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Executive summary
The current Illinois congressional map was enacted by the Democratic-controlled General Assembly and signed into law in late November 2021, establishing 17 U.S. House districts following the 2020 census and taking effect for the 2022 elections [1] [2]. The plan, passed amid partisan debate, was designed by legislative Democrats and widely characterized as advantaging their party — a charge supporters deny by pointing to efforts to create an additional Latino opportunity district and reflect shifting population patterns [3] [4].
1. What the 2021 map is, legally and practically
Illinois lost one seat after the 2020 census and the General Assembly enacted a new congressional plan in November 2021 that redraws the state into 17 districts; that plan was signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker and was the operative map for the 2022 congressional elections [1] [2] [3]. Legislative roll-call totals recorded the Senate approving the proposal 41–18 and the House 71–43, reflecting party-line dynamics and the supermajority procedures required to enact the map [1] [5].
2. The partisan frame: claims that Democrats engineered an advantage
Multiple outlets reported the map was drawn to bolster Democratic chances in federal races: analysts and opponents argued the enacted plan likely secures Democrats control of roughly 14 of the 17 districts and was designed to eliminate two Republican-held seats, a result critics labeled as partisan gerrymandering [4] [3] [6]. Republican lawmakers and local critics complained that public input was ignored and that the process produced highly contorted districts that served political objectives rather than compact representation [7] [6].
3. The defense offered by Democratic leaders and proponents
Democratic leaders defended the plan as reflecting demographic realities and improving representation for growing communities of color, including the creation of a second predominantly Latino district in response to census shifts in Illinois’ Latino population [3] [4]. Supporters argued the map groups communities with shared policy interests and complies with federal requirements while responding to population loss that forced the state to drop to 17 seats [3] [2].
4. Litigation and judicial review
The enacted congressional plan faced federal challenges alleging unconstitutional or racially discriminatory districting, but a three-judge federal panel ultimately rejected plaintiffs’ claims and upheld the legislative plan on December 30, 2021, finding that the predominant purpose of the General Assembly was political rather than racial and that the plan was lawful under the challenged counts [5] [8]. That judicial decision left the 2021 map in place for subsequent elections [5].
5. Political fallout and incumbency effects
The 2021 map produced immediate incumbent consequences: it dismantled or reshaped several existing districts, prompting incumbents to reconsider reelection plans and creating contested primaries in newly drawn territories — an outcome widely reported as both strategic and disruptive to individual members’ careers [4] [9]. Observers noted the map’s ripple effects across central Illinois and the Chicago suburbs, where lines were redrawn to consolidate partisan advantage while responding to population density shifts [9] [7].
6. Where to see the map and ongoing context
Official enacted maps, shapefiles and narratives are published by legislative and state sources — the Illinois Senate Redistricting Committee, state agencies and academic data portals maintain the enacted congressional maps and related demographic data, and outlets such as IECAM provide side-by-side access to the post‑2010 and post‑2020 district datasets [10] [11] [2]. Independent trackers and news organizations continue to analyze partisan impact, minority representation, and compactness measures, keeping the 2021 plan a live subject of policy and legal scrutiny [8] [6].