LaSalle Republican County Central Committee unanimously recommends a vote of non-retention for Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas Kilbride for the 3rd Judicial District.
Justice Kilbride is up for retention on the November 2020 ballot and must meet the 60% retention threshold in order to keep his seat on the Illinois Supreme Court.
The Illinois GOP urges Kilbride’s ouster because of his close ties to whom they refer to as the “corrupt” House Speaker Michael Madigan.
Furthermore Kilbride’s decisions on the bench have ruled against term limits for state offices, struck down pension reform, and struck down a measure for fair maps of state legislative districts in 2016.
The Quad Cities Times believes the opinions Kilbride is most criticized for are the ones that were unanimous.
Kilbride is a Rock Island Democrat first elected to the high court in 2000. He’s the only downstate representative in the court’s narrow 4-3 Democratic majority.
County GOP Chairman Larry Smith said Thursday that, in return for millions in campaign cash from Madigan, Kilbride has protected Madigan’s power and sided with the Speaker’s powerful allies since Kilbride’s 2000 election.
Kilbride maintains all the Illinois Supreme Court decisions he has been a part of had strong Bi-Partisan support.
The Quad Cities Times writes that Kilbride has won support from law enforcement.