judicial elections Archives - Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts

Primary Election Results: Voter Turnout was Low, but Judicial Races Weren’t Neglected

Preliminary results are in from the 2022 primary election in Illinois, which included a number of judicial races. Primary turn-out was disappointing – the “second-lowest for a modern-era primary” – with only 1-in-5 Chicago voters participating and suburban Cook County showing a similar turn-out rate...

Rethinking and Reinvesting in Justice – Thank You for Supporting October 2020 Virtual Forum Series!

Every October, the Collaboration for Justice of Chicago Appleseed & Chicago Council of Lawyers gathers for a luncheon to highlight the important systemic reform work our staff, interns, allies, and pro bono partners have done over the year. Because this year we couldn't gather in person, we...

Merit-Based Judicial Retention in Illinois: A Viable Way to Improve the Quality of the State’s Judiciary

Merit-Based Judicial Retention in Illinois: A Viable Way to Improve the Quality of the State's Judiciary In 2014, Representative Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago) proposed to amend the Illinois constitution as a means to improve the way Illinois retains its judges. Her bill (HJRCA0010) suggested...

Voters Do Not Retain Cook County Judge

For the first time in nearly 30 years, Cook County voters have voted against the retention of a sitting Circuit Court judge. Judge Matthew Coghlan, who sat in the Criminal Courts, received less than the 60% “yes” vote necessary to retain his seat. The Illinois Supreme Court will appoint a replacemen...

Thoughts on the Judicial Primary

We’re just past the March 2018 primary. Before the election, Vote for Judges received about 55,000 unique visitors with about 100,000 viewed/downloaded pages. The evaluations collected by Vote for Judges were aggregated through a number of ballot reference websites, like Ballot Ready. It’s great to...

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