The Sixth Illinois Constitutional Convention, popularly known as Con-Con, convened on December 8, 1969 and concluded on September 3, 1970.[1] The convention produced the 1970 Illinois Constitution, the state's first new constitution in 100 years, which the voters of Illinois approved in a special election in December 1970.
The 116 delegates to the convention were elected in nonpartisan elections in the fall of 1969. Interest from candidates was high: over 500 petitions for candidacy were filed.[2]
On September 23, a primary election was held, with turnout of 18%.[2] The top four vote-getters in each of the state's 58 legislative districts advanced to the general election. The general election was held on November 18, 1969, with turnout of 27%.[2] The top two vote-getters in each district in the general election became delegates. Candidates for delegate had to meet the same criteria as candidates for state senate, including being at least 25 years old.[3]
The elected delegates included 13 women, 15 African Americans (two of whom were women), and 34 people under age 40.[4] Fifty-six of the delegates were lawyers; there were also eleven educators, five farmers, and five bankers, among many other occupations represented.[2] Ninety-six had college degrees.[2]
The delegate elections were not without controversy. Some Chicago-area districts saw sharp battles between "independent" candidates backed by the Independent Voters of Illinois and candidates backed by the "regular Democratic party". In the 24th district on Chicago's south side, after coming in fourth in the primary, independent candidate Michael Shakman filed a lawsuit in federal court. He sought an injunction to prevent the city from requiring its workers to campaign for his opponents as a condition of their patronage hiring. The lawsuit was dismissed, but eventually reinstated, and gave rise to the Shakman Decrees.[5]
The president of the convention was Samuel W. Witwer, an attorney from Kenilworth, who for that reason has sometimes been called "the father of the Illinois constitution".[6] Odas Nicholson, an attorney from Chicago, was elected as secretary. Nicholson, an African American woman, was the convention's only officer who was not a white man.[4]
The vice presidents of the convention were Elbert S. Smith of Decatur, Thomas G. Lyons of Chicago, and John Alexander of Virden. Alexander, who was 27 years old and had never held elective office, was the only officer to face opposition. However, he prevailed by a strong margin over his sole opponent, Betty Howard of St. Charles, who received only 29 votes from the floor.[7]
Lyons and Nicholson were described in the press as representing "organization Democrats", while Alexander was described as representing the delegates who were under age 40.[7]
Over the 1969-1970 holiday break, Witwer assigned the delegates to committees and appointed a chair of each committee. There were nine substantive committees and three procedural committees.[4] Witwer himself was an ex officio member of all the committees, and the vice presidents were ex officio members of the committees to which he assigned them.[8]
| Legislative district | Name | Committees | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samuel W. Witwer | Public Information, Rules and Credentials, Style and Drafting | |
| 1 | Frank Cicero, Jr. | Revenue and Finance, Style and Drafting | |
| 2 | Lucy Reum | Legislative | |
| 2 | Thomas J. McCracken | General Government | |
| 3 | John G. Woods | Local Government, Public Information | |
| 3 | Virginia Macdonald | Bill of Rights | |
| 4 | Clyde Parker | Education | |
| 4 | Anne H. Evans | Education | |
| 5 | John E. Dvorak | Bill of Rights | |
| 5 | Anne Willer | Judiciary | |
| 6 | Martin Ozinga, Jr. | Revenue and Finance | |
| 6 | James E. Gierach | Executive Article | |
| 7 | Joseph A. Tecson | Executive Article | |
| 7 | Roy C. Pechous | Bill of Rights | |
| 8 | Ray H. Garrison | Revenue and Finance | |
| 8 | Thomas H. Miller | Suffrage and Constitution Amending | |
| 9 | Joan G. Anderson | Local Government, Rules and Credentials | |
| 9 | Joseph T. Meek | Revenue and Finance, Rules and Credentials | |
| 10 | Peter A. Tomei | Suffrage and Constitution Amending | |
| 10 | Paul F. Elward | Revenue and Finance, Rules and Credentials | |
| 11 | Martin Tuchow | Revenue and Finance | |
| 11 | Bernard Weisberg | Bill of Rights, Rules and Credentials | |
| 12 | Dawn Clark Netsch | Revenue and Finance | |
| 12 | Malcolm S. Kamin | Education | |
| 13 | Ronald C. Smith | Executive Article | |
| 13 | Elmer Gertz | Bill of Rights | |
| 14 | John F. Leon | Executive Article | |
| 14 | William J. Laurino | Legislative | |
| 15 | Thomas G. Lyons | Legislative, Revenue and Finance, Public Information, Rules and Credentials, Style and Drafting | |
| 15 | David E. Stahl | Local Government, Public Information | |
| 16 | William F. Lennon | Suffrage and Constitution Amending | |
| 16 | James E. Strunck | Revenue and Finance, Rules and Credentials | |
| 17 | Harold M. Nudelman | Judiciary | |
| 17 | Frank Orlando | Executive Article | |
| 18 | Edward J. Rosewell | General Government, Style and Drafting | |
| 18 | Leonard N. Foster | Bill of Rights | |
| 19 | Joseph C. Sharpe, Sr. | Suffrage and Constitution Amending, Style and Drafting | |
| 19 | William A. Jaskula | Suffrage and Constitution Amending, Style and Drafting | |
| 20 | Victor A. Arrigo | Bill of Rights | |
| 20 | Madison L. Brown | Local Government | |
| 21 | Frank D. Stemberk | Legislative | |
| 21 | Gloria S. Pughsley | Education | |
| 22 | Samuel A. Patch | Education, Style and Drafting | |
| 22 | James Kemp | Bill of Rights | |
| 23 | Richard M. Daley | Local Government, Style and Drafting | |
| 23 | Leonard F. Miska | Revenue and Finance | |
| 24 | Odas Nicholson | Judiciary | |
| 24 | Albert A. Raby | Bill of Rights | |
| 25 | Francis X. Lawlor | Bill of Rights | |
| 25 | Louis Marolda | Executive Article | |
| 26 | Thomas E. Hunter | Judiciary, Rules and Credentials | |
| 26 | Clifford P. Kelley | Legislative, Public Information | |
| 27 | Michael J. Madigan | General Government | |
| 27 | Joseph Rachunas | Judiciary | |
| 28 | Philip J. Carey | Local Government | |
| 28 | Ted A. Borek | Local Government | |
| 29 | Charles A. Coleman | Executive Article | |
| 29 | Richard K. Cooper | Revenue and Finance | |
| 30 | David Linn | Judiciary | |
| 30 | Mary Lee Leahy | General Government, Style and Drafting | |
| 31 | John D. Wenum | Local Government | |
| 31 | Mary A. Pappas | Legislative | |
| 32 | Jeannette Mullen | Revenue and Finance, Rules and Credentials | |
| 32 | Jeffrey R. Ladd | Judiciary | |
| 33 | Stanley C. Johnson | Revenue and Finance | |
| 33 | Maxine Wymore | General Government | |
| 34 | Robert R. Canfield | General Government | |
| 34 | Betty Ann Keegan | Local Government, Rules and Credentials | |
| 35 | Harlan Rigney | Executive Article | |
| 35 | Wayne W. Whalen | Judiciary, Style and Drafting | |
| 36 | Louis James Perona | Legislative | |
| 36 | Edwin F. Peterson | Local Government | |
| 37 | Paul E. Mathias | Education | |
| 37 | David Davis | General Government, Rules and Credentials | |
| 38 | Betty Howard | Education, Public Information | |
| 38 | James S. Brannen | Revenue and Finance | |
| 39 | Thomas C. Kelleghan | Bill of Rights | |
| 39 | W. A. Sommerschield | Legislative, Rules and Credentials | |
| 40 | Helen C. Kinney | Judiciary | |
| 40 | Anthony M. Peccarelli | Legislative, Style and Drafting | |
| 41 | Louis F. Bottino | Education Committee | |
| 41 | Arthur T. Lennon | Bill of Rights | |
| 42 | John L. Knuppel | Legislative | |
| 42 | James S. Thompson | General Government | |
| 43 | Lewis D. Wilson | Bill of Rights, Style and Drafting | |
| 43 | William R. Armstrong | General Government, Public Information | |
| 44 | Charles R. Young | Executive Article, Style and Drafting | |
| 44 | Edward H. Jenison | General Government | |
| 45 | David E. Connor | General Government | |
| 45 | John C. Parkhurst | Local Government | |
| 46 | Samuel L. Martin | Legislative | |
| 46 | Donald D. Zeglis | Local Government | |
| 47 | Charles W. Shuman | Suffrage and Constitution Amending | |
| 47 | Henry I. Green | Suffrage and Constitution Amending, Public Information | |
| 48 | Clarence E. Yordy | Judiciary | |
| 48 | William D. Fogal | Education | |
| 49 | Maurice W. Scott | Revenue and Finance | |
| 49 | William L. Fay | Judiciary | |
| 50 | Elbert S. Smith | Bill of Rights, General Government, Local Government, Public Information, Rules and Credentials, Style and Drafting | |
| 50 | Franklin E. Dove | Education | |
| 51 | Dwight P. Friedrich | Executive Article | |
| 51 | James S. Parker | Executive Article | |
| 52 | Stanley L. Klaus | Suffrage and Constitution Amending | |
| 52 | John Alexander | Education, Judiciary, Suffrage and Constitution Amending, Public Information, Rules and Credentials, Style and Drafting | |
| 53 | Wendell Durr | Revenue and Finance | |
| 53 | Ray Johnsen | Local Government | |
| 54 | William F. Fennoy, Jr. | Bill of Rights | |
| 54 | John M. Karns, Jr. | Revenue and Finance | |
| 55 | J. L. Buford | Education | |
| 55 | Henry C. Hendren, Jr. | Suffrage and Constitution Amending | |
| 56 | Ralph Dunn | Local Government | |
| 56 | David Kenney | Revenue and Finance, Public Information | |
| 57 | Clifford L. Downen | Revenue and Finance | |
| 57 | Robert L. Butler | Local Government | |
| 58 | Matthew A. Hutmacher | Bill of Rights, Rules and Credentials | |
| 58 | George J. Lewis | Legislative |
The voters of Illinois approved the convention's new constitution in a special election held on December 15, 1970. The constitution was approved by a 55.5% majority, with 37% turnout. Seventy-two downstate counties voted against the constitution, but strong majorities in the Chicago area allowed it to pass.