(NewsNation) — The outcome of the 2024 election in Illinois isn’t really in doubt. It’s considered one of the most reliably blue states in the country, giving its Electoral College votes to Democrats for more than 30 years.
When NewsNation asked its Decision Desk HQ team for a more detailed breakout, though, it showed that much of the state, around 75%, consists of farmland. In these rural areas, a majority of people typically vote for Republicans.
One Southern Illinois farmer told NewsNation he doesn’t mind getting up before dawn and spending long days in the fields.
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Matt Rush of Fairfield’s grandfather moved to this farm in 1918, and his family’s been there ever since.
“We farm corn, soybeans and wheat, and we raise cattle,” Rush said. “But what we’re most proud of is raising our family on a family farm.”
Rush says he’s used to having presidential elections decided by the voters in the Chicago area. What bothers him is feeling like he and his neighbors aren’t getting fair representation.
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Voters in the city, by their sheer number, control politics in Illinois. For those in small, rural towns, that can be discouraging.
“We have a vote down here, too, and we matter,” Rush said.
A lot of what Rush harvests is sent to Mexico. He thinks important decisions like trade policy, like his crops, also need “sunlight”… in the form of honest, open debate.
“It’s not good to have one party in charge, because I think what makes good policy is debate,” Rush said.
Illinois has 17 congressional districts, but despite all this “red” on the 2020 election map, only three of those seats are held by Republicans.
So how does this happen? Some blame gerrymandering, or the act of manipulating the boundaries of electoral districts to benefit one party or group.
Princeton’s Gerrymandering Project rated Illinois as one of the worst offenders when it comes to gerrymandering. The state’s 2021 final congressional map received an overall grade of “F.”
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“That’s not right,” Rush said. “Let’s be transparent and have equal representation.”
At the end of the day, Rush says he “just wants to hear the facts.”
“I don’t want to hear the jargon around it,” he said.
Like so many Americans, Rush works hard, is proud of what he does and just wants a fair playing field.
At the end of the day, red state or blue, he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
“I think it’s God’s country,” Rush said. “There’s a lot of nice places across America, but I’m pretty particular to Southern Illinois.”
