ILLINOIS (WTVO) — The citizens of seven additional Illinois counties have voted to consider splitting from Chicago and Cook County and forming a new state.
All seven counties that had a ballot question, asking voters if they wanted to explore secession, voted in favor of the proposal, according to NBC 5 Chicago .
The ballot question reads, “Shall the board of (the county) correspond with the boards of other counties of Illinois, outside of Cook County, about the possibility of separating from Cook County to form a new state and to seek admission to the Union as such, subject to the approval of the people?”
Illinois voters who support the referendums argue that Chicago and Cook County voters hold an oversized sway in policies enacted by the state legislature, and do not align with the priorities of rural voters.
Voters in Iroquois County, Calhoun County, Clinton County, Green County, Jersey County, Madison County, and Perry County passed the measure Tuesday night, joining at least 21 other counties that voted in favor of secession discussions in the 2020 and 2022 elections.