Yesterday Rod Blagojevich signed legislation that puts Illinois into the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPV). Illinois joins Maryland and New Jersey as the only three states have signed the legislation. Participating states agree to award their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote. The agreement doesn't take effect until enough states join to total 270 electoral votes - the number needed to win the presidency. In the event of a tie, the current system would be used. NPV doesn't require a state to amend its constitution, but it does require that states join the compact by adopting it as a state law. more ›

Last week, both houses of the Illinois General Assembly passed a law that would enable Illinois to bypass the Electoral College in future presidential elections. The move came just before New Jersey Governor John S. Corzine signed similar legislation on Sunday that would eliminate New Jersey's participation in the Electoral College. The only other state to have passed a similar law is Maryland, which was the first state to take up the cause. more ›

New York Times reporter Monica Davey took an "unscientific survey" of people at the Cultural Center yesterday, asking them questions from the new citizenship test. People didn't do too well. We decided to do our own "unscientific survey" of Chicagoist staffers and friends, and ... wow. Somewhere, our history teachers are in a corner gently weeping. Highlights of our wrongness: 42. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of... more ›