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These days in the state of Illinois, the downstate politicians want to kick Chicago out of the state. Back in the "Roaring 20s" it appears
that Chicago wanted to leave Illinois. Needless to say it didn't happen, but there's still a love/hate relationship between Chicago and the rest of the state for the most part.
Downstaters controlled the state legislature. Letting Chicago have more seats would take away their power. So the legislature had simply refused to redistrict after the 1910 census. The same thing had happened after the 1920 census.
According to Alderman John Toman, the city deserved five more state senators and 15 more state reps. Now Toman offered a resolution to the city council — that the city’s lawyer should investigate how Chicago might secede from Illinois. The resolution passed unanimously.
Obviously, there were going to be problems. The U.S. Constitution said that no new state could be carved from part of an existing state, unless the existing state approved. Would downstate be willing to let Chicago go, and lose all that tax revenue?
Probably not yet. But perhaps sometime in the future. Besides, there were ways of getting around the Constitution. After all, West Virginia had been torn away from its mother state Virginia during the Civil War.
Believe it or not there was a time Chicago politics seemed a lot more colorful. This certainly underscores that point doesn't it?
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