Monday, November 16, 2020
In a year full of anomalies and surprises, the 2020 November election was no exception. This year, an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots slowed the vote tally process leaving several Illinois races too close to call for days. Election authorities had until Tuesday, November 17th to finish counting ballots. Here’s how things turned out.
President: Joe Biden won Illinois with 55.8% of the vote.
United States Senate: Incumbent Senator Richard Durbin (D) won reelection to a six-year term over four opponents by 53%.
United States House of Representatives: Results are final in all of Illinois’ US House districts. All incumbents retained their seats.
Federal Fiscal Update
The deadline for Congress to pass a budget to keep the government running is less than one month away – Dec. 11. What seemed far off a few months ago is now causing some anxiety as lawmakers attempt to reach a budget deal in a lame-duck session. The most likely scenario is that we’ll see another continuing resolution to take us through to the next Congressional session.
COVID-19 Relief
Although both parties have expressed interest in approving another relief funding bill before the end of the calendar year, there is no consensus on the size and scope of such a bill at this time. Negotiations on Capitol Hill are once again moving forward following the election, and our network must keep pushing for additional resources to meet the demand for critical services in communities across the state.
Illinois Election Update
Proposed Constitutional Tax Amendment: The proposal on the ballot to amend the Illinois Constitution to implement a graduated/progressive tax FAILED. This is the first major political setback for Governor JB Pritzker. It remains to be seen how this will affect the state budget.
Illinois Senate: One seat was flipped from Republican to Democratic for a pick-up of one Democratic seat in the Illinois Senate. Karina Villa (D – Batavia), defeated Jeanette Ward by a slim margin.
Illinois House of Representatives: Overall, Illinois House Democrats lost 4 seats while Republicans lost two, resulting in an overall addition of two more House Republicans.
Several of these flips occurred in AgeGuide’s region:
- 45th District: Diane Pappas (D – Bloomingdale) defeated by Seth Lewis (R)
- 51st District: Mary Edly-Allen (D – Libertyville) defeated by Chris Bos (R)
- 41st District: Grant Wehrli (R – Naperville) defeated by Janet Yang Rohr (D)
- 66th District: Allen Skillicorn (R – Crystal Lake) defeated by Democrat Suzanne Ness (D)
The planned Illinois veto session has been cancelled. This puts everything on hold. There are currently no committees scheduled and as of yet there is not calendar for the Lame-duck or spring session. The new legislature will be sworn in on January 13th.
How You Can Help
During this transition period, AgeGuide is working to ensure every elected official both new and returning, considers the needs of older adults, and the sustainability of the programs that serve them, in their plans and priorities. This is particularly important as COVID-19 continues to rage as we head into the holiday season. We encourage you to reach out to your elected officials to help us strengthen this message further.
