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Peoria Township electors approve advisory question urging equal signature requirements for independent candidates, 20-1
Summary
At the Peoria Township annual meeting electors voted 20–1 to place a nonbinding advisory question on the March ballot urging Illinois to make signature requirements for independent and new-party candidates equal to those for Republican and Democratic candidates.
Peoria Township electors on Tuesday voted 20 to 1 to place a nonbinding advisory question on the March ballot asking the state to require the same petition-signature thresholds for independent and new-party candidates as for major-party candidates.
The advisory question, submitted by petitioners and presented at the township’s annual meeting, asks whether the state of Illinois should “adopt fair and achievable signature requirements for independent and new party candidates, making them equal to requirements of Republican or Democratic party candidates” so as to improve ballot access.
Sheldon Shaffer, spokesperson for the petitioners, summarized the petition and its intent in a five-minute presentation before the vote. Shaffer said the current disparity in Illinois makes independent and new-party runs “unachievable” at higher offices. He cited a comparison in the Sixteenth Congressional District where, he said, a Democratic candidate needed fewer than 600 signatures while an independent or new-party candidate faced requirements exceeding 15,000 and roughly 23,000 to survive challenges.
Connie Romanis, president of the League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria, urged electors to vote yes and said the League supports uniform application of election law through the State Board of Elections. “The voters in Peoria Township should have the opportunity to be represented by a wider range of candidates to choose from when they go to the ballot box,” Romanis said.
Trustees and several electors spoke in favor of placing the advisory question on the ballot, while questions were raised about whether recent increases in signature thresholds for some municipal races resulted from redistricting rules rather than rules specifically targeting nonpartisan or independent candidates. A township official said the clerk and staff will accept written comments about the advisory referendum through March 1, 2025, and that the advisory question would appear on the March 17, 2026 ballot if placed there.
The moderator called for a standing vote; the clerk reported the final count as 20 yeas and 1 nay. The advisory question is nonbinding and would only express township electors’ preference to state lawmakers.
Votes at a glance: advisory question to place the ballot-access question on the March 2026 ballot — passed 20 yeas, 1 nay.
