A voter would still be able to vote for every Republican or Democrat or even every Libertarian candidate on the ballot should that voter so choose. He or she would simply have to place a mark next to each candidate s name. In the process of doing that, the voter might decide that a candidate of another party merits support, perhaps because that candidate knocked on the voter s door and made a favorable impression. Straight ticket voting rewards laziness and sloth. Votes in this House in the past have broken down almost entirely along party lines, Republicans opposing elimination due in large part to the perception that since there are more registered Republicans statewide, Republicans benefit.
Perceptions can be wrong.
Illinois Republicans pushed to ban straight ticket voting since they believed elimination would help them in the Chicago area. When straight ticket voting was finally eliminated in the state, however, Republicans were hurt because Democrats did better downstate and still held strong in Cook County. Let s put parties aside this year and do what is most likely to produce election of the most qualified, most committed candidates. The tri-partisan minority says the time has come. Manning, Buckley and Vaillancourt spoke against.