EFFINGHAM —
CHICAGO (AP) President Barack Obama won Illinois on Tuesday, though it was too early to determine whether strong support in his home state would carry through to the big prizes of the night: a handful of U.S. House races where Democrats hoped to pick up some of the seats they lost two years ago.
The Associated Press called Obama's victory based on exit polling shortly after polls closed Tuesday.
The economy was the issue most on voters' minds.
Randy Yorke, who cast his ballot for Obama, said his own financial situation has improved since four years ago and that the president deserves another term.
"I'm much better off now than I was four years ago," said Yorke, 64, a lawyer from the Chicago suburb of Naperville. "The country's better off."
Jim Chmura, 67, of Oak Park, said he struggled with his decision right up until he punched his ticket for Romney, concluding he "could probably break through the gridlock" in Washington more easily to help improve the economy..
"It was not yes this one or yes that one," said Chmura, a semi-retired printing company manager who voted for Obama in 2008. "But I finally decided my biggest concern was the economy."
Tim Kelly, 56, a Springfield Republican and a self-employed software developer, said he voted for Romney because he thinks Obama has not Òreally led."
Democrats were looking to Illinois to add to their numbers in Congress, eyeing half a dozen races they consider competitive.
The state's Democratic congressional candidates have a big advantage because they're running in districts drawn to help them as much as possible. Illinois congressional and legislative districts were redrawn after the 2010 census to reflect population changes, and the Democratic majority in Springfield controlled the process.
That has created an extra challenge for Republican Reps. Judy Biggert, Robert Dold and Joe Walsh, all of whom live in the Chicago suburbs, and Rep. Bobby Schilling in the Quad-Cities area. New districts also give Democrats a shot at picking up an empty seat in eastern Illinois.
Last week, Obama officially endorsed the three Democratic candidates running in the Chicago suburbs: Tammy Duckworth, Brad Schneider and Bill Foster.
While some of their members, including tea-party Congressman Walsh, are in tight races, Republicans believe they can hold most of the seats and perhaps pick up one in southwestern Illinois where the Democratic incumbent, Rep. Jerry Costello, is retiring.
U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. is expected to win another term despite taking a leave of absence, and not campaigning, since June to be treated for bipolar disorder and other health problems.
Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady predicted the state's financial problems under a Democratic governor and Democrat-controlled General Assembly could cause voters to opt for Republicans in the congressional races.
With the new political map, all 177 seats in the Illinois General Assembly were on the ballot. That produced some fierce battles, but there was little chance Republicans would pick up enough seats to seize control of the state Senate or House.
Arguably the strangest legislative race involved former Rep. Derrick Smith's bid for another term. The Chicago Democrat was booted out of the House in August after he was indicted on federal bribery charges, but he remains on the ballot. Hoping to avoid embarrassment, party leaders were backing third-party candidate Lance Tyson.
Obama spent the day in Chicago and was expected to deliver either a victory or concession speech at his campaign's election-night party at the McCormick Place convention center.
The election season was quieter than usual in Illinois, with no statewide races on the ballot and Obama expected to easily win the state's electoral votes. Yet Cook County Clerk David Orr, who is responsible for overseeing voting in suburban communities around Chicago, described turnout as "robust."
Illinois voters also get to decide whether to amend the state constitution. The proposed change, which some voters found confusing, would require a three-fifths vote, instead of a simple majority, for any public body to increase pension benefits.
Local News
November 6, 2012
Obama wins Illinois
- Local News
-
- State begins publicizing new professional licenses The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation is well known for publicizing the misdeeds of licensed professionals who have had their licenses suspended or revoked. But the IDFPR has decided to share good news, as well. The departm
-
Scholastic team heads to nationals
TOLEDO — For the past eight months, Cumberland High School Scholastic Bowl team has met five times a week, rigorously drilling over esoteric trivia and honing their skills for competition. They will find out if the hard work paid off Friday as five m
- Police search for semitrailer looters Effingham police are seeking burglars who stole a wide variety of items from a trucking company lot sometime over the weekend. The thieves broke into three semitrailers at SAIA Trucking, 1414 E. Fayette Ave., sometime before 7:35 a.m. Monday. Police
-
Storms ravage area
Dave Habbe still had a house after Monday night's severe storms. The rural Effingham resident woke up Tuesday to find his vehicles intact, as well. But Habbe still had quite a mess to clean up. Fallen trees and limbs blocked the circle drive to his h
- Crash victims identified The five men killed in a van wreck west of Vandalia Monday have been identified. Fayette County Coroner Bruce Bowen said the men, all from Baltimore, were identified as Emerson Baldwin, 54; Andrew Canada, 53; Antonie Mitchell, 42; Mark William 52; an
- Board moves forward with new track NEWTON -- Despite a tight budget going into next school year, Jasper County School District accepted a bid for a new track Monday. The district accepted in a 6-1 vote a bid from Midwest Track Builders of more than $91,000 for a new latex track for th
- Split board OKs fund to maintain TREC Effingham County Board agreed in a split vote Monday to create a maintenance fund for the multiuse trail west of Effingham. In a 5-3 vote, the board agreed to set aside $2,500 per year for trail maintenance. Chairman Jim Niemann said county officials
-
5 killed in I-70 van crash
A van carrying church members returning from a California gathering careened off of a southern Illinois freeway and overturned several times Monday, killing five people and sending six others to hospitals, authorities said
-
Crowd turns out to dedicate VFW memorial
After months of design, construction and maintenance, the new memorial at Effingham VFW Post 1769 was dedicated during a ceremony Saturday. More than 100 people attended the dedication of the granite memorial with bricks commemorating past and presen
-
Drug Court gives grads second chance at life
Greg Evans has been arrested more times than he can remember, spent time in jail, and been a drug user for 25 years of his life. At the Effingham Area Drug Court Graduation Friday, he hoped to put all that behind him. "The only hope we have is here t
- More Local News Headlines
