SOPHIA TAREEN

Ex-sheriff wins Illinois GOP Senate primary; faces Durbin
A former Chicago-area sheriff has emerged from a crowded Illinois Republican primary field to mount a long-shot challenge to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin.
 
Chicago area prosecutor endures expensive primary challenge
The Chicago area’s top prosecutor, who was haunted by questions about the Jussie Smollett case, has won the Democratic nomination for another term.
 
Activists sue over Illinois’ automatic voter registration
Voter advocacy groups are suing the secretary of state’s office and election officials over Illinois’ problem-plagued automatic voter registration system.
 
Illinois officials: 1 noncitizen voted in registration error
Illinois officials say at least one non-U.S. citizen voted after an error in the state’s automatic vote registration system mistakenly registered over 500 people who said they weren’t citizens.
 
Illinois mistakenly cancels ex-inmates’ voter registrations
Illinois election officials say they may have mistakenly canceled the voter registrations of 774 former inmates. The State Board of Elections on Monday blamed a “data-matching error” with the Department of Corrections.
 
Illinois joins multi-state lawsuit over new food stamp rules
Illinois is joining a multi-state lawsuit over proposed Trump administration rules on food stamps that could cause hundreds of thousands of Americans to lose their benefits. The rule is expected to go into effect in April.
 
Illinois: Error registered a possible 545 noncitizen voters
Officials say a computer error in Illinois’ new automatic voter registration system may have led to 545 non-U.S. citizens being registered to vote, 15 of whom cast ballots.
 
Illinois assesses damage from mistaken voter registrations
Illinois election officials say at least three of 15 voters who cast ballots after being mistakenly registered to vote are U.S. citizens after all.
 
Illinois sues e-cigarette maker Juul over youth marketing
Illinois has become the latest state to sue nation’s biggest e-cigarette maker. State Attorney General Kwame Raoul says Juul Labs Inc., used deceptive marketing practices to entice minors and misrepresented the amount of nicotine in its products.
 
Obama library brings elation but also fear of displacement
Residents living near the Obama Presidential Center’s proposed site say the prospect of a gleaming center honoring the president they supported excites them, but they also fear neighborhood revitalization might push them out.
 
Holocaust survivor Eva Kor dies at age 85
Holocaust survivor Eva Kor, who championed forgiveness even for those who carried out the Holocaust atrocities, has died.
 
Illinois governor signs law expanding access to abortion
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed sweeping abortion protections into law that establish women’s access to the procedure as a “fundamental right.”
 
Illinois candidate wiretapped discussing black politicians
Newly released FBI wiretaps captured Democratic Illinois governor candidate J.B. Pritzker telling then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich that a state lawmaker was the “least offensive” African-American he could appoint to a Senate seat.
 
Obama talks at climate change summit as mayors sign charter
Former President Barack Obama says cities and states have emerged as “the new face of American leadership” on climate change.
 
Democrats unveil plan to remove Illinois from voter database
Democratic state lawmakers are introducing a plan to halt Illinois’ participation in a controversial multi-state voter registration database after efforts to persuade the State Board of Elections failed.
 
Latest front in Weinstein scandal: Statehouses say ‘me too’
Lawmakers, lobbyists and consultants from statehouses nationwide are coming forward to say sexual harassment is a pervasive problem in politics.
 
Colleges offering legal tips, hotlines amid DACA uncertainty
 
Illinois governor signs sweeping school funding changes
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner on Thursday signed into law sweeping changes to the way the state funds schools, calling it a historic day that will bring “more equality, more fairness and better opportunity for all the students of Illinois.”
 
Illinois Senate approves school funding overhaul
The Illinois Senate on Tuesday approved a school funding overhaul that supporters hailed as “historic,” saying it will increase aid to all of the state’s more than 800 districts and eliminate large disparities between rich and poor schools.
 
Governor signs law limiting Illinois police on immigration
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed a plan into law that limits the role local and state police in Illinois can play in cooperating with federal immigration authorities.
 
Illinois governor calls another special session on education
Gov. Bruce Rauner has called a special legislative session after lawmakers ignored his noon deadline for sending him legislation that revises the public education funding formula with just weeks before the scheduled opening of school.
 
Illinois House approves state budget, ends historic impasse
The Illinois House voted Thursday to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s vetoes of a budget package, giving the state its first spending blueprint in more than two years and ending the nation’s longest fiscal stalemate since at least the Great Depression.
 
Governor threatens to reject 911 funding bill over fee hikes
Gov. Bruce Rauner has threatened to reject a plan extending the funding mechanism for the state’s 911 call centers, saying proposed fee increases are too high and the plan is loaded with other ideas.
 
Obama unveils vision for presidential library in Chicago
The Obama Foundation has unveiled plans for the former president’s lakefront presidential center. The renderings and a model were showcased at an event Wednesday where former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama were expected to give more details.
 
AP Explains: What is May Day?
Tens of thousands of immigrants and their supporters are expected to rally Monday against Trump administration policies.
 
Chicago suburban mayor and Trump backer has narrow vote lead
A longtime suburban Chicago mayor who aligned himself with President Donald Trump was holding on to a narrow lead in his re-election battle with a union organizer backed by top Democrats.
 
Report: Illinois’ poor more often victims of violent crime
A Chicago nonprofit organization says people living in poverty in Illinois are more likely to become victims of violent crime than higher wage earners, whether they live in the city, suburbs or rural areas.
 
School seminar near Chicago sparks civil rights, race debate
A civil rights seminar at a largely white public high school in suburban Chicago has some parents and conservative groups calling the event “radical” and “divisive.”
 
Lawmakers consider expanding Illinois immigrant protections
Illinois legislators are hoping to boost immigrant protections in response to President Donald Trump’s executive orders, a move advocates say would essentially give the state “sanctuary” status.
 
Cities, counties plan immigrant legal aid after Trump’s win
Major U.S. cities and counties are beefing up legal services for immigrants in the wake of Donald Trump’s election.
 
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