Several Illinois counties that have explored the idea of secession might be welcomed with open arms in Indiana.

Legislators in Indiana’s Republican-majority General Assembly have introduced a house bill that would establish a commission to discuss whether it’s advisable to adjust the boundary between Illinois and Indiana.

The House Republicans included the bill on a list of their top priorities for the 2025 session, which specifically noted that dozens of counties in Illinois have voted since 2020 “to secede from their high-tax state,” the Indianapolis Star reported.

“To all of our neighbors in the West, we hear your frustrations and invite you to join us in low-cost, low-tax Indiana,” House Speaker Todd Huston said, according to the newspaper.

In the November election, a total of seven counties in Illinois faced a ballot question on exploring the idea of secession, and all seven voted in favor of the proposal, according to county clerks’ offices. The group includes: Iroquois, Calhoun, Clinton, Green, Jersey, Madison and Perry counties.

Prior to the 2024 election cycle, at least two dozen counties voted affirmatively on the non-binding initiatives.

The reasoning behind the referendums, according to supporters, is that the city of Chicago and Cook County have a sizable impact on the policies enacted by the state legislature, and rural counties share different interests that are not being represented by the actions of the General Assembly.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker called Indiana’s proposal “a stunt” earlier this week.

“…It’s not going to happen, he said. “But I’ll just that say Indiana is a low-wage state that doesn’t protect workers, a state that does not provide health care for people when they’re in need and so I don’t think it’s very attractive for anybody in Illinois…”

Many legal experts have expressed skepticism that such an effort could ever be successful. That group includes Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, who penned a letter to the state’s attorney of Jersey County on the issue in 2023.

#10 Illinois faces #2 Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, on Friday, January 17 at 6 p.m. CT. Follow along here for live updates from the dual. 

Probable Match-ups
125: Caelan Riley, SO vs #28 Joey Cruz, SO
133: #2 Lucas Byrd, SR vs #3 Drake Ayala, JR
141: #17 Danny Pucino, SR vs #21 Ryder Block, FR, 2-2 or Jace Rhodes, SO, 5-2 or Cullan Schriever, SR, 3-5
149: #15 Kannon Webster, FR vs #3 Kyle Parco, SR
157: #22 Jason Kraisser, SR vs Miguel Estrada, FR
165: #15 Braeden Scoles, FR vs #2 Michael Caliendo, JR
174: #19 Danny Braunagel, JR vs #5 Patrick Kennedy, JR
184: #13 Edmond Ruth, SR vs #5 Gabe Arnold, FR or Angelo Ferrari, FR
197: #13 Zac Braunagel, SR vs #1 Stephen Buchanan, SR
285: #11 Luke Luffman, SR vs #13 Ben Kueter, FR

A GoFundMe page has raised more than $5,000 to assist with memorial service costs for a West Springfield woman who was found dead earlier this month in Springfield’s Forest Park.

Joann Garelli, 56, was found dead Jan. 7 in the Camp Star Angelina area of Forest Park, according to a Facebook post from Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni.

Garelli’s death is currently under investigation by the Hampden District Attorney’s Office and the Springfield Police Detective Bureau’s Homicide Unit.

Andrew Santiago created the GoFundMe page to help his wife, Elizabeth Herd, pay for her mother’s memorial service, according to the page. On the page, Santiago called for an end to violence against women.

“[T]he violence and abuse of women are not taken seriously and we all need to come together as one to help prevent these attacks on women!” Santiago wrote.

The page was created Jan. 9 and will remain open until Garelli’s memorial service, which is scheduled to be held Jan. 21.