LATEST NEWS
Springfield landlord registry referendum passes overwhelmingly
A majority of Springfield voters support the city adopting a landlord registry with nearly 70% voting “yes” for the referendum…
Republican Paula Crouch elected sheriff
Republican incumbent Paula Crouch defeated Democratic challenger Marc Bell in the race for Sangamon County sheriff in the Nov. 3…
Election results for contested County Board races
Despite a total of 17 seats up for reelection on the Sangamon County Board and increased eyes on county politics,…
A strong showing for Doris Turner
Four years ago, state Sen. Doris Turner barely survived her first election to the Illinois Senate. On Tuesday, Nov. 3,…
COVER STORY
Best Of Springfield 2026 Intro
Every year, we ask our opinionated readers to tell us about their favorite people, places and things in the Springfield area. Over the decades we’ve been doing this, we’ve continued to tweak both the process and the results issue to try to keep things fresh and interesting. This year, more people voted for their favorite…
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NEWSLETTER
News
Incumbent U.S. Reps. Budzinski, Miller win their reelection bids
Incumbents in the two congressional districts that include parts of Sangamon County – the 13th and the 15th — both…
UIS to host post-election webinar to examine midterm results
The University of Illinois Springfield School of Politics and International Affairs and Center for State Policy and Leadership will host…
Sangamon County among six Illinois jurisdictions with election monitors
Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray said everything was going well so far on Election Day at the 81 polling sites…
Memorial’s West Lake campus to close
The winding down of residential services at Memorial Behavioral Health’s West Lake campus could create a temporary gap in the…
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Previous Issues
opinion
Major issues vie for legislature’s attention
A few weeks ago, Gov. JB Pritzker told reporters that negotiators are closer than they’d ever been to a deal with the Chicago Bears…
Small town elections are important
For weeks, candidate ads have dominated television viewing. Text messages and phone calls are nonstop. Yard signs are popping up like my late season…
Letters to the editor 10/22/26
We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to editor@illinoistimes.com. SUPPORT SECOND AMENDMENT She…
Observations of an immigrant court observer
I consider Chicago my hometown. My entire family was raised on Chicago’s south side and I grew up in a southeast suburb called Dolton,…
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Food and drink
Great Halloween recipes with minimal fuss
Halloween cookery can range from playfully autumnal to murderously macabre. From festive pumpkin crostini to bloodied witches’ fingers and ghoulish…
The secret to tender meat
With soaring grocery prices, I’ve been passing up the expensive, well-marbled T-bone steaks for more affordable proteins. Top-notch ingredients will…
How to make homemade caramel
Making scratch-made caramel can be daunting. Between the intimidating prospect of boiling sugar and the risk of it seizing up…
> More Food and Drink
Music
Ricki Marvel to play Hobgoblinspookadelic concert Saturday
This Halloween night, your best rock ‘n’ roll entertainment value might just be the return of NIL8’s…
A spooky start to ISO’s new season
The Illinois Symphony Orchestra will kick off its 2026-2027 season on Halloween eve (Friday, Oct. 30), with…
Falling into October music
As we fly on through October like autumn leaves in a fall breeze, the festivals are finished,…
> More Music
ARTS AND CULTURE
Refreshing honesty
“My joy is gone, grief is upon me, my heart is sick. The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.…
Chatham printmaker designs catalog cover
Sow True Seed, an employee-owned seed company based in Asheville, North Carolina, has revealed the cover of its 2027 seed catalog, a linoleum block print…
UIS students collect 6,220 pounds of food during Trick-or-Treat for Canned Goods
University of Illinois Springfield students collected 6,220 pounds of food during the annual Trick-or-Treat for Canned Goods event on Halloween. Eight teams consisting of 119…
> More Arts and Culture
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Best Of Springfield 2026 Intro
Every year, we ask our opinionated readers to tell us about their favorite people, places and things in the Springfield area. Over the decades we’ve been doing this, we’ve continued to tweak both the process and the results issue to try to keep things fresh and interesting. This year, more people voted for their favorite…
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We are dedicated to giving our readers a source of news and opinions on local politics, communities, culture and the arts. We have the Springfield area’s most comprehensive calendar of events – coverage of movies, dining, music, visual arts and the printed word. We offer stories you won’t find anywhere else on topics ranging from city and state government to marijuana to prison reform to education.
