West Cook News

Illinois Republicans are backing a lawsuit challenging mail-in voting, saying it will result in fraudulent vote counts and ballot harvesting this November.

“Every American has a fundamental, constitutional right to vote,” Pat Hughes said on the Cook County Republican Party website. “But that right is abridged when the election is marred by fraud or disenfranchisement. The purpose of this lawsuit is to ensure the accuracy and integrity of Illinois’ elections. While there has always been a certain cynicism about elections in Illinois and particularly in Chicago, we must fight to ensure the will of the people is honored, and that Illinois voters can be confident in the election process.”

Hughes is president and co-founder of the Liberty Justice Center, a Chicago-based nonprofit conservative litigation organization whose stated mission is to protect honest government, economic, private property and free speech rights.

The lawsuit naming Gov. J.B. Pritzker as defendant was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. This is the fourth lawsuit the Justice Center has filed against Pritzker and the state this year.

The Cook County Republican website indicated that vote by mail is presented by backers as a way to protect people from contracting the COVID-19 virus after visiting a crowded in-person polling place, but is actually a smokescreen to skew election results. They said people already have the right to vote from home by requesting an absentee ballot.

Republicans contend the new program that offers millions of Illinois residents vote-by-mail ballots only opens the door to election fraud.

“More than any other state in the nation, Illinois has a track record of both corruption and incompetence,” Sean Morrison, chair of the Cook County Republican Party, said. “Its residents have no reason to believe that the government can conduct an honest and accurate vote-by-mail in the upcoming election. This is a crucial election year for Illinoisans, not just because of the presidential race but because they will be asked to vote on the governor’s graduated income tax referendum. The best way to proceed this November without inviting massive potential for fraud and disenfranchisement is for people who are uncomfortable voting in person, a perfectly reasonable position, to request absentee ballots.”

The Cook County Republican website added that vote-by-mail was rushed through the State General Assembly in 72 hours by Democrats, without proper House, Senate or public debate. Pritzker signed the legislation for expanded mail voting on June 16.

Republicans accused Pritzker of attempting to use vote-by-mail to achieve a graduated income tax that would allow Illinois to tax income at a higher rate. Pritzker – after signing the vote-by-mail legislation – donated $51.5 million to a Ballot Initiative Committee to solicit votes for the graduated tax plan.