West Central Reporter

The Illinois Republican Party has voted unanimously to recommend a vote of non-retention for Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas Kilbride of the 3rd Judicial District.

To keep his seat on the Illinois Supreme Court, Kilbride must meet a 60% retention threshold this November.

Kilbride has ties to House Speaker Michael Madigan and has historically made decisions in Madigan's favor, maintaining the 4-3 Democratic majority on the Illinois Supreme Court. In 2010, the last time Kilbride was up for retention, Madigan made his retention a political priority.

In exchange for campaign funding, Kilbride has voted to side with Madigan and his allies, including around issues including redistricting maps.

In 2016, Kilbride wrote the majority opinion that overruled the Fair Maps Initiative that would have let voters have a say in redistricting. The decision was in Madigan's favor, allowing him to gerrymander maps.

“Justice Kilbride is a Madigan pawn occupying a seat on the Illinois Supreme Court, and he must be defeated," Tim Schneider, chairman of the Illinois Republican Party, said in a press release. "Kilbride has been elected by Madigan’s millions and has returned the favor, rejecting every good government reform that has appeared on the docket all in service to Madigan’s stranglehold on Illinois politics. The Illinois Republican Party strongly urges a vote of non-retention for Justice Kilbride.”