SPRINGFIELD — Illinois voters in November will get to decide whether to have a constitutional convention and revamp the state’s governing document.
The question of whether to rewrite the state constitution is automatically put to voters every 20 years, and Illinoisans rejected the idea in 1988. But some veteran political observers and activists believe that voters may think differently this year because of the state’s contentious political climate.
“If we owned cars or homes performing as poorly as state government, we would give them a tune-up or call a contractor,” said John Alexander, a Virden resident who was a delegate to the last state constitutional convention, in 1969-1970.
Samuel Gove, former director of the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at University of Illinois, said the vote may come down as a protest of Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Political infighting has dominated Springfield for the past year, going so far that Blagojevich sued House Speaker Michael Madigan over the power to call the Legislature into special session. The Legislature and governor were also months late in agreeing on a budget. Some lawmakers have called for the governor’s resignation or impeachment.
Possibly at stake in a constitutional convention could be the state’s flat income tax rate, election of judges, and almost any other issue that participants wanted to bring up. If voters in November approve the idea of having a constitutional convention, a separate election would be held for delegates, who would meet in 2010 to work on the document.
Former candidate for governor Dawn Clark Netsch cautioned against holding a convention, saying she fears hot-button social issues like abortion or stem cell research would monopolize the debate because special interests are frustrated that the issues are not being debated by the state Legislature. She argues that ineffectual lawmakers, not the Constitution, stop the state from addressing important social issues.
“The atmosphere is so poisoned right at the moment,” she said.
But Netsch, who served as a delegate at the 1969-1970 convention, agreed that voter frustration with Springfield lawmakers may work in favor of reformers, such as Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, who favors a convention.
Quinn was among activists who pushed unsuccessfully for a convention in 1988, seeking fundamental reforms in the state’s property tax system, education funding, ethics rules and the creation of a recall-election system.
Quinn said Wednesday that many of those issues are again driving this year’s push for a convention: “It’s sort of, ‘Back to the Future.”‘
The question is one way for Illinoisans to change the course of state government. Movements to place other questions on the ballot all failed to meet a Monday deadline. Among initiatives that failed to make the cut were a measure to recall the governor, a ban on gay marriage in Illinois and a movement to lower the voting age to 17.