Indiana takes first action in long-shot plan to acquire parts of Illinois

Indiana is taking a first step toward a rather unlikely effort to amend its border and acquire parts of Illinois.

The legislature in the Hoosier State passed a bill last week to establish the Indiana-Illinois Boundary Adjustment Commission that would recommend whether to alter the border between the two states.

Indiana Gov. Mike Braun, a Republican, plans to sign the measure into law, his office said on Friday. The governor will then face a Sept. 1 deadline to schedule the commission’s first meeting.

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This comes as residents of some counties in Illinois seek to separate from the densely populated and deep blue Chicago area.

But despite support from the Indiana government and the people in the Illinois counties that would change states, the Illinois government and the U.S. Congress would need to approve the plan to change state boundaries.

Illinois’ top elected officials do not support the idea.

A companion bill in Illinois authorizing the state to participate in the commission to change the border has not received a hearing in an Illinois House committee. Democrat Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker also described the Indiana measure earlier this year as “a stunt.”

Minor boundary changes between states are not a new idea, as there have been at least 50 in U.S. history, according to the National Center for Interstate Compacts at The Council of State Governments. However, no major changes have been implemented since the Civil War era, when some counties in Virginia separated to create West Virginia.

The current effort to change the border between Illinois and Indiana is fueled in part by political divisions. The Chicago area is controlled by Democrats and, given the area’s large population, the party also controls the state government, while Republicans represent many other parts of Illinois. The Indiana government, meanwhile, is controlled by Republicans.

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In the last five years, voters in 33 Illinois counties have approved ballot measures asking if they want to consider separating from Cook County, a county that includes Chicago, to form a new state. But the initiative does not necessarily mean they would join Indiana, if given the opportunity.

A similar effort is ongoing in eastern Oregon, as some counties in that Democrat-controlled state want to break away and join Republican-led Idaho. The Idaho House approved a measure two years ago allowing Oregon to enter into discussions, but similar measures have not moved forward as they remain stuck in committees in the Oregon legislature.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.