Illinois is one of only eight states that elect Supreme Court justices, and with the balance of power on the line in this year’s election, plenty of attention is being paid to two suburban races.
Millions of advertising dollars are being poured into the second district race, where former Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran is facing Judge Elizabeth Rochford. Incumbent Republican Justice Michael Burke is also up for election in the third district, facing off against Appellate Court Judge Mary K. O’Brien.
Currently, liberals hold a majority on the seven-seat court, but if conservatives can flip the third district seat while holding onto the second district seat, then the balance of power could change next month.
Harold Krent, a professor at the Kent College of Law, says that having two contested seats is a massive responsibility for Illinois voters.
“Matters that affect people’s lives are at stake,” he said.
Much of the focus in both races has been on abortion access. A group of medical professionals known as “Protect Our Court” gathered on Monday to discuss the issue, expressing concerns that a shift in political power on the Supreme Court could spell trouble after the overturning of the Roe v. Wade decision earlier this year.
“The bottom line is that we do not want to advocate for any one particular candidate in this race,” Dr. Allison Cowett said. “We are here as health care professionals to advocate for our patients, for reproductive freedom.”
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Both O’Brien and Rochford have run advertisements promoting their pro-abortion access stances, with O’Brien arguing that Burke supports restricting access to the procedure.
Burke, currently representing the second district but running in the third after redistricting, has pushed back against those claims, with his campaign saying that he has not publicly expressed an opinion on the Dobbs decision.
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“We as judges cannot express our personal views about issues that may come before the court because they may be seen as committing us to a particular position,” he said in a statement earlier this year.
Burke argues that O’Brien’s advertisements constitute “unethical” behavior.
Abortion isn’t the only issue on TV airwaves. Conservative groups have gone after Rochford and O’Brien for their links to former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan, who is currently under indictment for his role in a wide-ranging scandal involving ComEd.
With so much at stake, Krent says that voters need to educate themselves on the myriad issues that could come before the court in coming years, with justices earning 10-year terms if they win this November.
“It’s not only abortion rights, but it’s gun registration rights (too),” he said. “If there are challenges to the new ‘SAFE-T Act,’ in terms of bail reform, those will end up before the new Illinois Supreme Court as well.”
Justices are elected to 10-year terms, then face retention votes. Illinois’ Supreme Court is divided into five districts. Three justices are elected in the first district, which includes Chicago and Cook County. Each of the remaining four districts elects one justice.
Currently, three liberal justices represent the first district, with Justice Mary Jane Theis running for retention. The second and third districts are being contested this November, while the conservative-controlled fourth and fifth districts will go up for votes in later elections.
