THE
Daily Egyptian SERVING THE SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY SINCE 1916.
DAILYEGYPTIAN.COM
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2024
VOL. 108, ISSUE 14
Rice and River: A family’s approach to the changing agricultural landscape
Wyatt Gerard, 23, looks out the window of the combine as he harvests a field of rice on his fathers farm Sept. 9, 2024 in McClure, Illinois. Wyatt is son to Blake Gerard, a fourth-generation rice farmer in the southernmost Illinois. Lylee Gibbs | @lyleegibbsphoto FOR STORY AND MORE PHOTOS | 6
Carbondale citizens protest against objections to City Council candidates Morrigan Carey mcarey@dailyegyptian.com
Current Human Relations Commision chair and former Carbondale City Council member Navreet Kang has filed objections against City Council candidates Ginger Rye Sanders and LaCaje Hill, who are both incumbent councilpersons, and Ryan Reed, a challenger seeking a council seat in the April election. In response, members of the Carbondale community gathered outside of Carbondale City Hall at 5 p.m., Nov. 12, 2024 to protest the objections. The complaints against the candidates are related to their paperwork; allegedly, each candidate did not provide a statement of economic interest before the required filing date, and none of the candidates had their paperwork securely bound “in book form” pursuant to Illinois state law. The Municipal Officers Electoral Board was formed to evaluate the
objections and determine whether or not to take action against the candidates, possibly prohibiting them from appearing on the ballot in April. The members of the board are Carbondale Mayor Carolin Harvey, City Clerk Jennifer Sorrell and Councilperson Adam Loos. Their decision will be based on a preponderance of evidence, meaning Kang will have to prove that it is more probable than not that the candidates are in violation of the law. Protesters saw the objections filed against the candidates as discriminatory, as all three candidates are African American, and Kang has an alleged history of racist comments. According to Councilperson Nancy Maxwell, Kang had made remarks about driving over Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020. Attendees held signs which emphasized “supporting the community” and fighting against right-wing ideology CITY COUNCIL | 3
Election delays fuel ongoing push for Jackson County voting accessibility Annalise Schmidt aschmidt@dailyegyptian.com
As Jackson County voters wait for the final election totals, an unprecedented tie in the State’s Attorney race has added an unusual twist to this year’s election cycle and process. While the county worked to ensure accessible voting with early and mail-in options, Election Day still saw significant wait times at some polling places, reflecting the logistical demands of managing a busy election cycle, including the challenges of balancing accessibility with efficiency. Specific turnout figures for the county are not yet available publicly. The unofficial results for Jackson County’s 2024 presidential election show a voter turnout of 69.41%, with 22,576 out of 32,524 registered voters casting their ballots. John Jackson, visiting professor at the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at SIU, said, “70% turnout is very good by national standards and Jackson County always does that. The key difference is that this, of course, was a presidential election with all the combination of stuff going on with the media and all that.”
Illustration by Dena Rendleman | @dena.rendleman
While turnout in presidential elections tends to be strong, local elections often struggle to engage voters to the same extent. “Local elections are held in the spring in the even off-years, and they are pitiful on turnout,” Jackson said. “Turnout will be 15, 20 or 25%. It’s just hardly any comparison at all, especially Carbondale city and other city elections. It’s a massive difference,” Jackson said. Discussing factors that drove voter
turnout this election, Jackson pointed to the polarizing political environment. He said, “It was the battle between Harris and Trump, and Trump, of course, has dominated our politics for nine years now, and will dominate it for another four years. So that was the key factor, either going to vote for Trump or against Trump, probably the number one battle going on there.” In the county and across the nation, the factors that shaped voting VOTING ACCESSIBILITY | 2