Races for two state Supreme Court seats loom large

Races for two open seats at the Illinois Supreme Court could upend its balance, which is now four Democrats and three Republicans.

A shift to a 4-3 GOP advantage, much less 5-2, could jeopardize cases affecting workers and organized labor,  so Democrats want to win at least one of the two seats.

“Labor has fared pretty well at the state Supreme Court,” said Marc Poulos, Executive Director at the Indiana, Illinois and Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting, “in issues ranging from pensions to Prevailing Wage. So labor doesn’t want to lose that makeup.

“Also, any Supreme Court consequences are really long-term,whether you’re talking about Illinois or the U.S. Supreme Court,” he continued. “U.S. Supreme Court Justices get lifetime appointments. Others in government are elected for two, four or six years. Illinois’ Supreme Court Justice are elected for 10 years, after which they run for retention.

“Honestly, this is one of the most important elections in labor folks’ lifetimes,” he added.

Decisions will be made in the 2^nd District (DeKalb, Kendall, Kane, Lake and McHenry Counties) and the 3^rd (including DuPage, Kankakee and Will counties).

The 3^rd District June 28 primary was uncontested in both parties, so its race will have Democratic appellate judge Mary Kay O’Brien running against sitting Republican Supreme Court Justice Michael Burke. Both were “highly recommended” by the Illinois State Bar Association. (Burke had been appointed to finish retiring Republican Justice Bob Thomas’ 2^nd District seat, but then the District was changed by redistricting, forcing him to run in the new 3rd.)

In contrast, races for the 2^nd District, which has had a Republican Justice for two decades, were competitive for both Democrats and Republicans.

At press time, Republican Mark Curran had a narrow lead over Daniel Shanes in the 2^nd’s GOP primary.

A former Lake County Sheriff who once faced a “no confidence” vote by his employees, Curran ran against U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin in 2020 and now seems to be trying to appeal to Right-wing interests, telling the Chicago Sun-Times he feels “like liberty is eroding.”

The state bar association rated Curran “not recommended,” and in April he was removed from running over petition discrepancies, but a Cook County judge in May restored his name to the ballot.

Also running were Lake County judge Daniel Shanes (“highly recommended”), appellate judge Susan Hutchison (“highly recommended”), and Kane County judge John Noverini (“not recommended”).

Shanes, a judge and former prosecutor, was better funded and had endorsements from Illinois Senate GOP Leader Dan McConchie and the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police, but his current tally is some 630 votes short.

On the Democratic side of the 2^nd District, the “highly recommended” Lake County judge Elizabeth Rochford defeated Kane County Judge Rene Cruz (“recommended”) and Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering (“not recommended”).

Rochford, a Lake County judge, was endorsed by organized labor and politicians including retiring Secretary of State Jesse White. the Illinois State AFL-CIO, Locals of the Operating Engineers, Plumbers, the UFCW and both Lake County and McHenry Building & Construction Trades Councils and 44 of their local affiliate trade unions.

The state AFL-CIO reported using significant phone-banking resources for the 2^nd District race, bolstering Rochford’s campaign. Such political activity will be needed in the face of expected Republican campaign cash.

For example, millionaire Ken Griffin, who provided about $50 million in backing to defeated gubernatorial candidate Richard Irwin, has contributed $6.25 million to an “independent” expenditure committee that in 2020 used more than $4 million of Griffin’s campaign donations to defeat Justice Thomas Kilbride’s bid for retention, according to the Chicago Tribune. (After Kilbride lost, the Illinois Supreme Court appointed Robert Carter to complete Kilbride’s 3^rd District until this year’s election.)

A wild card could be turnout, which was low in the primaries. An effective Get Out The Vote effort could make a difference.

“You know, we all hear, ‘This is the most important election in our lifetime’ it seems like every time,” said Poulos, who’s also on the Board of Directors for the Illinois Prevailing Wage Council. “But it can be true, too. ‘Elections have consequences,’ as they say. Just look at the radical re-structuring that the [U.S.] Supreme Court is doing, from ‘Citizens United’ and ‘Janus’ to voting rights.

“The Illinois Supreme Court is right up there,” he continued. “We’ve got to win one; it’d be better to win both.”