From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The state government of Illinois is modeled after the federal government with adaptations originating from traditions cultivated during the state's frontier era.[1] The capital of Illinois is located in Springfield. As codified in the state constitution, there are three branches of government: executive, legislative and judicial. The executive branch is led by the Governor of Illinois. Legislative functions are given to the Illinois General Assembly, comprising the 118-member Illinois State House of Representatives and the 59-member Illinois State Senate. The judiciary is headed by the state supreme court, which oversees the lower appelate courts and circuit courts. An amended Constitution was approved by a special referendum, and went into effect on December 15, 1970.
[edit] Politics
As one of the places held to be the birthplace of the Republican Party, the GOP was long dominant in Illinois. This has changed and the state has supported Democratic presidential candidates since 1992. John Kerry easily won the state's 21 electoral votes in 2004 by a margin of 11 percentage points with 54.8% of the vote. Traditionally, Chicago, East Saint Louis, and the Illinois portion of the Quad Cities tend to vote heavily Democratic, along with the Central Illinois population centers of Peoria, Champaign-Urbana and Decatur. It should be noted, however, that in the 2004 Presidential Election, Kerry won Peoria County by only 94 votes.[citation needed] Rural districts tend to vote more heavily Republican, and the southern half of the state has historically tended Republican since the 1920s. The Republican Party was strongest in southern Illinois during the sixties and seventies when Barry Goldwater, Richard Nixon, and Gerald Ford won all areas of southern Illinois, with the exception of East St. Louis, three to one.
[edit] Presidential election results
Presidential elections results[citation needed]
| Year |
Republican |
Democratic |
| 2004 |
44.48% 2,345,946 |
54.82% 2,891,550 |
| 2000 |
42.58% 2,019,421 |
54.60% 2,589,026 |
| 1996 |
36.81% 1,587,021 |
54.32% 2,341,744 |
| 1992 |
34.34% 1,734,096 |
48.58% 2,453,350 |
| 1988 |
50.69% 2,310,939 |
48.60% 2,215,940 |
| 1984 |
56.17% 2,707,103 |
43.30% 2,086,499 |
| 1980 |
49.65% 2,359,049 |
41.72% 1,981,413 |
| 1976 |
50.10% 2,364,269 |
48.13% 2,271,295 |
| 1972 |
59.03% 2,788,179 |
40.51% 1,913,472 |
| 1968 |
47.08% 2,174,774 |
44.15% 2,039,814 |
| 1964 |
40.53% 1,905,946 |
59.47% 2,796,833 |
| 1960 |
49.80% 2,368,988 |
49.98% 2,377,846 |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Wikisource. Illinois Constitution of 1818.
