Three Counties Will Vote in November to Consider Splitting Downstate Illinois From Chicago Area

Dmitry Larichev/iStock/Getty Images Plus Two counties in Illinois, along with a portion of a third county, will vote this November to consider a no...

August 26, 2022
4:46 AM

Dmitry Larichev/iStock/Getty Images Plus Two counties in Illinois, along with a portion of a third county, will vote this November to consider a nonbinding referendum to split the state in two — essentially making the City of Chicago its own entity while the rest of the state follows a different path. Brown County in western Illinois and Hardin County in southern Illinois, along with the northeast portion of Madison County in the southwest part of the state, will vote to consider joining 24 other counties who have already voted in the last five years to study the possibility of the rest of the state breaking away from Cook County and the Chicago area to form their own state.

James Murphy