Consultant Chosen to Assist Independent Redistricting Effort

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Published on December 29 2015 9:11 am
Last Updated on December 29 2015 9:11 am
Written by Greg Sapp

In preparation for a 2016 ballot referendum on Illinois legislative redistricting reform, the Independent Maps coalition recently announced the addition of Hilltop Public Solutions as campaign consultant and Dave Mellet as campaign manager.

A spokesman said, "Hilltop Public Solutions specializes in coalition building and managing high-stakes, high-profile campaigns by using the strategies and tactics it takes to win modern campaigns."

Mellet has worked on state and local campaigns for close to 10 years. After receiving a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Pennsylvania, Mellet started his career working on Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell's successful 2006 reelection campaign. He went on to staff and manage campaigns for mayor, city council, state senate, and alderman. He has lived in Illinois for several years, working as a staffer for a direct mail firm and as the campaign manager for former Lt. Gov. Simon last year.

Independent Maps has collected more than 400,000 petition signatures, more than two-thirds of the way to its goal of 600,000 signatures. The campaign has until May 2016 to collect at least 290,216 valid signatures of registered voters – equal to 8 percent of the total number of votes cast in the most recent election for governor. Because reform opponents will challenge signature validity, the coalition set a goal of collecting twice as many signatures as required by law.

The Independent Map Amendment would create an 11-member commission representing the demographic and geographic diversity of the state. The commission meetings and records would be open to the public, and the commission would be required to hold public hearings throughout the state. The commission drawn maps would be required to protect the voting rights of racial and ethnic minorities, and the maps would be drawn without regard to incumbency or partisanship. Adoption of the maps would require approval of seven commissioners, including at least two Democrats and two Republicans.