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ELECTORAL REFERENDUMS IMPLEMENTATION
PUBLIC MEETING
Tuesday, October 10, 2023 – 7 P.M.
Skokie Public Library
Petty Auditorium
5215 Oakton Street
Skokie, Illinois 60077
1) Welcome and Introductions
2) Process and Actions to Date
3) Review Proposed Implementation of Nonpartisan Elections, Staggered
Terms and Biennial Elections
4) Proposed Implementation of Hybrid Elections (4 Districts and 2 at-large
trustees)
a) Review of Guiding Principles in Creating Districts
b) Review of Map Development Process
c) Proposed District Map
5) Timeline and Next Steps
6) Public Comments, Ideas and Input
7) Adjourn
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Summary of Proposal for Implementing Referendums
On November 8, 2022, Skokie voters approved three (3) referendum questions related to the
Village's system of electing its representatives to Village government. The following is a summary
of the proposal of consulting legal counsel, Klein, Thorpe and Jenkins, LTD., and the Village
implementation team for implementing the referendums.
Referendum Question 1: "Shall candidates for Mayor, Clerk, and Village Trustee of the Village
of Skokie be elected at nonpartisan primary and general elections, beginning with the
Consolidated Primary and the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025
and April 1, 2025, respectively?"
Implementation Proposal: Amend the Village Code to adopt a system of nonpartisan elections
in which candidates for Village of Skokie elected office circulate and file nonpartisan nominating
papers for the Consolidated Primary Election and Consolidated General Election beginning with
the 2025 Consolidated Election schedule, as set forth Sections 3.1-25-20 through 3.1-25-55 of
the Illinois Municipal Code. 65 ILCS 5/3.1-25-20 through 65 ILCS 5/3.1-25 55.
A nonpartisan election system prohibits candidates from listing any political party affiliation on
their nominating papers and no political party affiliation will be listed on the ballot.
A nonpartisan election system does not prohibit candidates from coordinating their campaigns,
fundraising and platforms with other candidates and political parties.
Referendum Question 2: "Shall the Village of Skokie adopt a system of staggered four-year
terms and biennial elections for Village Trustees, beginning with the Consolidated Primary and
the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and April 1, 2025,
respectively?"
Implementation Proposal:
2025 2027 2029
April Election April Election April Election
2-year terms: 4-year terms: 4-year terms:
Trustee - District 1 Trustee - District 1 Mayor
Trustee - District 2 Trustee - District 2 Clerk
Trustee - District 3 Trustee - District 3 Trustee At-Large
Trustee - District 4 Trustee - District 4 Trustee At-Large
4-year terms: Not up for election Not up for election
(next election April 2029): (next election April 2031):
Mayor Mayor Trustee - District 1
Clerk Clerk Trustee - District 2
Trustee At-Large Trustee At-Large Trustee - District 3
Trustee At-Large Trustee At-Large Trustee - District 4
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Referendum Question 3: "Shall the Village of Skokie adopt a system of hybrid elections for
Village Trustees, in which 2 of 6 Village Trustees are elected at-large and 4 of 6 Village Trustees
are elected from districts, beginning with the Consolidated Primary and the Consolidated General
elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and April 1, 2025, respectively?"
Implementation Proposal: Amend Village Code to create four (4) Trustee Districts with a single
Trustee elected from each District, and two at-large Trustee seats.
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Draft Ordinance for Village Board consideration to
incorporate the three Referendums in the Village Code.
Oct. 10, 2023

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DRAFT
ORDINANCE NO. _______
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE SKOKIE VILLAGE CODE
TO ADOPT NON-PARTISAN ELECTIONS, STAGGERED TERMS OF OFFICE,
BIENNIAL ELECTIONS AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ELECTION DISTRICTS
WHEREAS, the Village of Skokie (“Village”) is a home rule municipal corporation duly
organized and existing under the laws of the State of Illinois; aTnd
WHEREAS, pursuant to the applicable provisions of and authority under the Illinois
Constitution and Article 28 of the Illinois Election Code, the following referenda questions were
initiated by voter petition and placed on the ballot for the November 8, 2022 General Election in
the Village of Skokie:
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Referendum Question 1: "Shall candidates for Mayor, Clerk, and Village Trustee of the
Village of Skokie be elected at nonpartisan primary and general elections, beginning with
the Consolidated Primary and the Consolidated General elections to be held on
February 25, 2025 and April 1, 2025, respectively?"
A
Referendum Question 2: “Shall the Village of Skokie adopt a system of staggered four-
year terms and biennial elections for Village Trustees, beginning with the Consolidated
Primary and the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and
April 1, 2025, respectively?”
ReferendRum Question 3: "Shall the Village of Skokie adopt a system of hybrid
elections for Village Trustees, in which 2 of 6 Village Trustees are elected at-large and 4
of 6 Village Trustees are elected from districts, beginning with the Consolidated Primary
and the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and April 1,
2025, respectively?"
(Dthe “Referenda”); and
WHEREAS, based upon the election results of the November 8, 2022 General Election in
Illinois in the Village of Skokie, the Referenda were approved by the voters of the Village; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to the applicable provisions of and authority under the Illinois
Constitution and Article 28 of the Illinois Election Code, the Village is responsible for taking those
lawful actions necessary to implement the electoral changes and local voting processes resulting
from the approval of the Referenda by the voters of the Village; and
WHEREAS, in addition to its authority and duties under the Illinois Constitution and the
Illinois Election Code, the Village is further empowered by its home rule authority to regulate its
own government and affairs and is authorized under the Illinois Municipal Code, 65 ILCS 5/1-1-1
et seq., and Illinois law to adopt ordinances pertaining to and promoting the public health, safety
and welfare of the Village; and
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED, by the Mayor and Board of Trustees of the Village
of Skokie, Cook County, Illinois:
SECTION 1: The recitals above shall be and are incorporated in this Section 1 as if fully
restated herein.
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DRAFT
SECTION 2: That Article II entitled “BOARD OF TRUSTEES” of Chapter 2 entitled
“ADMINISTRATION” of the Skokie Village Code of Ordinances (the “Code”) is hereby amended
by revising the current provisions of Section 2-31 of said Article, with those provisions shown as
stricken through to be deleted and those provisions shown in italicized print and underscored to
be added to Section 2.31, to read as shown below.
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“CHAPTER 2 - ADMINISTRATION
ARTICLE II. - BOARD OF TRUSTEES
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Sec. 2-31. - Composition; election; functions.
The Board of Trustees shall consist of the Mayor and 6 Trustees. The Trustees
shall be elected by the electors of the Village to office for 4-year terms as is provided
by statute law. Four of the six Trustees shall be elected by election district, one from
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each of the four election districts established in the Village. Two of the six Trustees
shall be elected at-large. The Mayor and Board of Trustees shall be the legislative
department of the Village government, and shall perform such duties and have such
powers as may be authorized by statute.”
SECTION 3: That Division 1 of Article III entitled “OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES” of
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Chapter 2 entitled “ADMINISTRATION” of the Skokie Village Code of Ordinances (the “Code”) is
hereby amended by revising the current provisions of Sections 2-61 and 2-62 of said Article, with
those provisions shown as stricken through to be deleted and those provisions shown in italicized
print and underscored to be added to Sections 2.61 and 2.62, to read as shown below.
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“ARTICLE III. - OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES
DIVISION 1. - GENERALLY
Sec. 2-61. - Form of government.
(a) The Village has adopted the managerial form of government as provided in 65
ILCS 5/5-1-1 et seq. The Village Board of Trustees shall be elected at large by
the electors and shall consist of a Mayor and 6 Trustees as provided in 65 ILCS
5/5-2-12 and 65 ILCS 5/5-2-15.
(b) The primary and consolidated elections for the Mayor, Village Trustees and
Village Clerk shall be conducted as a non-partisan elections pursuant to 10
ILCS 5/7-1 et seq. and the applicable provisions of the Illinois Election Code at
10 ILCS 5/10-1 et seq. The results of any primary or consolidated election
conducted for the aforesaid offices shall be certified and proclaimed by
resolution of the Mayor and Board of Trustees at the first regularly scheduled
meeting of the Mayor and Board of Trustees following the official canvass and
certification of the consolidated election results. Upon passage of the
resolution, the outgoing Mayor and Board of Trustees shall adjourn their
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DRAFT
meeting and a new meeting shall be convened at the call of the outgoing
Mayor. At the new meeting, the newly elected officials shall take their
respective oaths and commence their terms of office.”
(Code 1979, § 3.01; Ord. No. 05-4-C-3351, § 1, 4-4-2005)
Sec. 2-62. – Elections; Terms of Office, Election Districts
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The election of Trustees by election district and the election of the at-large Trustees, the
Mayor and the Clerk, shall be staggered as follows:
(a) The Village shall be divided into four compact and contiguous Village election
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districts of approximately equal population; and the membership of the Board of
Trustees shall be seven members, with one Trustee being elected from each
election district commencing in 2025 and thereafter, for an initial term of two
years and for elections thereafter for terms of four years. The Mayor, Clerk and
two Trustees shall be elected at large commencing in 2025 and thereafter,
each for a term of Afour years.
(b) At the election of Trustees from election districts, each elector shall vote for one
Trustee from the elector's respective district at the primary election, if any, and
the consolidated election. With the election of Trustees at large, two Trustees
shall be voted for by each elector at the primary election, if any, and the general
election. At the election of the Mayor and Clerk, one candidate for Mayor and
onRe candidate for Clerk shall be voted for by each elector at the primary
election, if any, and the consolidated election.
(c) The Village election districts shall be designated as Election District 1, Election
District 2, Election District 3 and Election District 4, respectively. The four
Village election districts shall be comprised of the geographic locations
described as follows:
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ELECTION DISTRICT 1
[Description]
ELECTION DISTRICT 2
[Description]
ELECTION DISTRICT 3
[Description]
ELECTION DISTRICT 4
[Description]
(d) All streets or other geographic features referenced in subsection (B) above are
those that are so shown on the maps published by the United States Bureau of
the Census for the 2020 census.
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DRAFT
(e) Any part of the Village that has not been described as included in one of the
districts set forth in subsection (c) above shall be included within the district
that:
(1) is contiguous to the part; and
(2) contains the least population of all districts contiguous to the part
according to the 2020 census.
(f) If any part of the Village is described in subsecTtion (c) above as being in more
than one district, said part shall be included within the district that:
(1) is one of the districts in which that part is described in subsection (c)
above;
(2) is contiguous to that part; and
(3) contains the least population according to the 2020 census.
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(g) If any part of the Village:
(1) is described in subsection (c) above as being in one district; and
(2) is entirely surrounded by another district;
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that part shall be incorporated into the district that surrounds the part.
(h) If any part of the Village:
(1) is described in subsection (c) above as being in one district; and
(2) is not contiguous to another part of that district;
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that part shall be included within the contiguous district that contains the
least population according to the 2020 census.
(i) Each trustee elected from an election district, while a champion for their district,
carries the solemn responsibility of upholding the welfare, growth, and
Ddevelopment of the Village as a whole.
Elections for municipal officers shall otherwise be held as is provided by
statute, and at the time prescribed by statute.”
(Code 1979, § 3.22)
State Law reference— Illinois Election Code, 10 ILCS 5/1-1 et seq.; elected officers
generally, 65 ILCS 5/3.1-15-5 et seq.; elected Village officers, 65 ILCS 5/3.1-25-5 et
seq.
SECTION 4: That the titles for the sections set forth in Article III, entitled “OFFICERS
AND EMPLOYEES”, in the table of contents at Chapter 2 entitled “ADMINISTRATION”, of the
Skokie Village Code of Ordinances (the “Code”) are hereby amended by revising the current title
of Section 2-62 of said Article which now reads “Sec. 2-62. – Elections”, to add those new
provisions shown as italicized and underscored below.
“Sec. 2-62. – Elections; Terms of Office, Election Districts”
SECTION 5: All ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict with this Ordinance are
hereby expressly repealed.
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DRAFT
SECTION 6: Except as to the Code amendments set forth above in this Ordinance, all
Chapters and Sections of the Village Code, as amended, shall remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 7: Each section, paragraph, clause and provision of this Ordinance is
separable, and if any provision is held unconstitutional or invalid for any reason, such decision
shall not affect the remainder of this Ordinance, nor any part thereof, other than that part affected
by such decision.
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SECTION 8: This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect after its passage, approval
and publication in pamphlet form as provided by law.
ADOPTED this ______ day of _____________________, 2023, pursuant to a roll call
vote as follows:
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AYES: _______________________________________________
NAYS: _______________________________________________
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ABSENT: _____________________________________________
APPROVED by me this _______ day of _________________, 2023, and attested to by
the Village Clerk this same day.
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_____________________________________
MAYOR
ATTEST:
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_____________________________________
VILLAGE CLERK
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DRAFT
STATE OF ILLINOIS )
) SS
COUNTY OF COOK )
CLERK'S CERTIFICATE
I, ________________, Clerk of the City of Skokie, in the County of Cook and State of
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Illinois, do hereby certify that the attached and foregoing is a true and correct copy of that certain
Ordinance now on file in my Office, entitled:
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE SKOKIE VILLAGE CODE TO ADOPT NON-PARTISAN
ELECTIONS, STAGGERED TERMS OF OFFICE AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ELECTION
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DISTRICTS
which Ordinance was passed by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Skokie at a Regular
Village Board Meeting on the ___ day of ________________, 2023, at which meeting a quorum
was present, and approved by the Mayor of the Village of Skokie on the ___ day of
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____________________, 2023.
I further certify that the vote on the question of the passage of said Ordinance by the Board
of Trustees of the Village of Skokie was taken by Ayes and Nays and recorded in the minutes of
the Board of Trustees of the Village of Skokie, and that the result of said vote was as follows, to-
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wit:
AYES:
NAYS:
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ABSENT:
I do further certify that the original Ordinance, of which the foregoing is a true copy, is
entrusted to my care for safekeeping, and that I am the lawful keeper of the same.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the Village
of Skokie, this ___ day of ________________, 2023.
________________________________
Village Clerk
[SEAL]

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Districtina Principles
The Consultant was guided by the following principles considered together.
• One person, one vote.
• Compact and contiguous.
• Center the map on a common identity - i.e., join the districts around the center of Skokie.
• Use, where feasible, major thoroughfares, known boundaries, and other physical features.
• Communities of interest based on reasonable proxies and public testimony.
• Edge-to-edge connections.
• Observe residential neighborhood contiguities where possible.
• Avoid isolating communities set apart by the Edens Expressway or large industrial areas.
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Final Consultant Map 'Forest' - September 28, 2023
Trustee District
with Population
Elementary School Districts N
1: 16,950
Parks, Cemeteries, and Golf Course W^^E
2: 17,055
Public Schools s
:::; 3: 17,053
Municipal Services
4: 16,766 Village Hall 0 0.25 0.5 J Miles

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Final Consultant Map 'Forest'- September 28, 2023
cmsQaifiapiaa
Trustee District N
with Population
W^^^E
1: 16,950
Parks, Cemeteries, and Golf Course s
2: 17,055
£ Public Schools
0 0.25 0.5 1
3: 17,053 m Municipal Services l Miles
4: 16,766 w Village Hall

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Final Consultant Map 'Forest' - 9/28/2023
District Demographics and Area
District Total Population Ideal Population White Black Asian Latino Population 18+
1 16,950 16,956 7,573 1,561 5,285 1,918 13,789
2 17,055 16,956 9,887 1,529 3,294 1,495 12,982
3 17,053 16,956 7,792 1,121 5,393 1,888 13,325
4 16,766 16,956 8,445 1,045 4,754 1,884 13,244
District Area: Square Miles
1 2.30
2 2.26
3 3.10
4 2.37