House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs) speaks at a rally on Republican Day at the Illinois State Fair on Aug. 18. [Blue Room Stream]

House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs) is hoping to bring down the House Democrats’ super majority with a record number of Republican candidates running for seats in the Illinois House on Nov. 8.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at a news conference Tuesday at Planned Parenthood of Illinois. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

Hours after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade at the end of June, Gov. JB Pritzker pledged to call lawmakers to Springfield within the “coming weeks” to craft a legislative response to the decision, but then hit the breaks on the special session when July arrived.

Now as Labor Day approaches and state lawmakers count down the days to the Nov. 8 election, a special session to take up abortion bills appears unlikely.

A report released by the Better Government Association calls into question Gov. JB Pritzker’s transparency on his personal investments. Republican nominee for governor Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) wants to the University of Illinois to increase in-state students’ enrollment. And the state is taking steps to contain gas prices after a fire at an Indiana refinery.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks outside IBEW Local 134 in Chicago Sunday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]  

As the campaign season kicks into high gear with just over two months before voters head to the polls on Nov. 8, Gov. JB Pritzker wrapped up a bus tour Sunday after barnstorming to 14 stops throughout the state.

Anti-Defamation League Regional Director David Goldenberg speaks during a House Public Safety and Violence Prevention Task Force hearing on Thursday. [Blue Room Stream]

Hate crimes are on the rise in Illinois and around the country and advocates are asking lawmakers do more to track hate crimes and help community organizations and law enforcement appropriately respond to incidents.

Gov. JB Pritzker visits the Mid-American Carpenters Regional Council in Elk Grove Village Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

As Democrats tout their support for unions, they are also calling on union members to spread the word about the Workers’ Rights Amendment that would make collective bargaining a constitutional right.

Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), left, and Gov. JB Pritzker, right, speak during an Illinois Farm Bureau forum in Lexington Wednesday. [Blue Room Stream]

The 2022 race for governor has pitted two opposite candidates against each other: a Chicago billionaire and businessman in Gov. JB Pritzker and downstate conservative farmer in Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia).

Both candidates made their pitches to farmers Wednesday at an Illinois Farm Bureau forum in Lexington where Pritzker listed his accomplishments over the last four years to argue he’s a better option for governor for farmers than career farmer Bailey.

An Illinois Supreme Court task force is reviewing the Pretrial Fairness Act to provide guidance on how it should be used in practice.

Some changes to the state’s pretrial laws made by the Pretrial Fairness Act could be an unintended burden on rural communities, public defenders on a state Supreme Court task force said.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks to reporters during Governors’ Day at the Illinois State Fair Wednesday. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]  

As summer comes to a close, state leaders say there are no updates on when or if lawmakers will return to Springfield for a special session ahead of the November election.

Conversations also remain in the works on gun control legislation as lawmakers search for a response to the July 4 Highland Park parade shooting.

Democratic nominee for secretary of state Alexi Giannoulias speaks during the Illinois Democratic County Chairs’ Association brunch at the Bank of Springfield Center in Springfield Wednesday. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The on-going debate over abortion is beginning to seep into the Illinois secretary of state’s race as Democratic nominee Alexi Giannoulias tries to pin down Republican opponent Rep. Dan Brady (R-Bloomington) on the issue.