The Illinois State Board of Elections website shows daily totals for the number of candidates who have filed to run in the June primary.

Seventeen of Illinois’ 59 Senate districts will have a primary matchup when voters go to the polls in June.

Recreational cannabis use became legal in Illinois in 2020.

Since Illinois legalized cannabis for recreational use starting in 2020, people looking to get into the business have sometimes faced more questions than answers about how to properly follow the state’s laws. Rep. Marcus Evans (D-Chicago) believes he has a solution for the people trying to work their way through the maze of Illinois government.

Sen. Dave Syverson (R-Rockford) speaks during a news conference on Thursday surrounded by his GOP Senate colleagues. [Blue Room Stream]

A group of Republican senators is looking to one-up Gov. JB Pritzker on his plan to stall a gas hike with an alternative pitch they say would save consumers more at the pump without risking state revenues. Meanwhile, Senate Democrats are pushing bills through the legislature designed to wean the state off gasoline in the long run and are promising to “explore” more short-term relief in the meantime.

Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association President Michael Jacobson, left, Choose Chicago CEO Jim Meyer, center, and Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia, right, speak during a Senate hearing Thursday.

COVID-19 metrics are down to some of the lowest levels of the pandemic and leaders in the tourism and hospitality industry are hopeful tourism rates in Illinois and Chicago will rebound this summer. However, they also say businesses in their industry still need more help.

McHenry County Board Chair Mike Buehler (R-Crystal Lake) and Rep. Suzanne Ness (R-Crystal Lake) speak in support of repealing a law unique to McHenry County Thursday.

McHenry County officials are pushing state lawmakers to repeal a 2019 law that only allow McHenry County voters to dissolve a township, saying they worry the process be difficult for the county to carry out. But some legislators have a different idea: expand the law across the whole state. 

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike says department leaders have their eye on a post-COVD-19 future and will take lessons they learned with them. And Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) is calling on Democrats to support bills she filed that aim to solve some of the deficiencies that resulted in a deadly COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle veterans’ home.

 Illinois Education Association President Kathi Griffin speaks during a virtual news conference on Wednesday.  

A new survey shows more Illinois teachers are considering leaving the profession and feeling more burned out as Illinois grapples with a shortage of teachers.  

The survey also found most Illinois parents want teachers making decisions about their children’s education and support teaching slavery and the history of racism in school, even amid national debate over curriculum decisions in schools.  

Sen. Suzy Glowiak Hilton (D-Western Springs) speaks at a news conference on Wednesday.

Lawmakers are moving ahead on a bill to speed up the process for people to receive their professional licenses from the state and start their jobs.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) is calling on lawmakers to pass legislation to ensure workers are paid fairly. And an attorney for the Prisoner Review Board told a House committee they support some of the concepts House Republicans have proposed to reform the board.

Sen. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago) speaks at a news conference Tuesday with Rep. Kam Buckner (D-Chicago), left, and President of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association President Michael Jacobson, right.

Recovery is not happening as fast as hotel industry leaders hoped, and they need a shot in the arm from the state, industry leaders said in a news conference in Springfield Tuesday.