A way forward for local Democrats

Democrats get their Statehouse chance

A new political map and lots of money give an edge to Scherer and Manar

The Republican legislative hegemony in Springfield is in peril. For the first time in almost 20 years, Springfield seems poised to help elect at least one – maybe even two – Democrats to r

Mud and money

A classic liberal and a traditional conservative are in a tight race for the new 13th Congressional District

David Gill is an unabashed liberal, even in a time when “liberal” is a dirty word.Gill is running for Congress in the 13th Congressional District as a Democrat, hoping to finally secure th

The GOP ambitions behind the Mitt Romney facade

A dispatch from the Republican National Convention

I had a decision to make. I’d been in Tampa for all of 15 minutes, and I was already late for something, anything, everything – a white rabbit with OCD, searching for Mad Hatters. Of cours

The new 96th

Five candidates vie for Illinois House seat representing part of Springfield

Five candidates are running, but only one will win the race to represent parts of Springfield and Decatur in the new 96th Representative District. The first leg of the race is the March 20 primary ele

Ready, set, GOvern!

Mayor Mike Houston gets high marks for stability. But what about those promises?

Ward 1 Ald. Frank Edwards, never known for holding his tongue, was just getting warmed up.“We should set the goals,” the alderman declared two weeks ago as the city council pondered Mayor

Who will bring Springfield together?

Leading a community means more than balancing the budget

Every day, the rusty steel rails of the 10th Street railroad tracks carry trainload after trainload of coal, manufactured items and raw materials through Springfield. But those tracks carry more than

Aldermania!

A ward-by-ward look at the candidates and the issues, from potholes to garbage pickup, sidewalks to the city budget. Politics doesn’t get any more grass-roots than this.

Ward 1: Young newcomer challenges a familiar faceIn 2008, Ward 1 got a Wal-Mart on South Sixth Street. Meanwhile, Mike Crews and Frank Edwards got an election issue. Both alderman candidates highlight

New kid on the block

Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon arrives in Springfield with a legacy, accessiblility and a banjo

The year was 1969 and Sheila Simon remembers fidgeting in her seat as her father, the late U.S. Sen. Paul Simon, was sworn in as lieutenant governor of Illinois. Nearly eight years old at the time, Sh

The man who would be senator

Can Alexi make it to Washington, D.C.?

We meet at a trendy little café on Main Street in Peoria on a cold, sunny Monday afternoon. State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias is on the campaign trail, and he has agreed to meet me to talk abou