Oak Park voters face divisive advisory question on Illinois Israel boycott law

Oak Park voters will weigh in Nov. 3 on whether Illinois should repeal laws barring state investment in businesses that boycott Israel. The advisory referendum has divided residents, prompted legal challenges and brought two community groups into opposing campaigns. Its outcome will measure public sentiment but will not necessarily lead to action by the village.

The ballot question concerns a law signed in 2015 by then-Gov. Bruce Rauner that restricts pension fund investments under several criteria, including provisions involving companies that boycott Israel. Supporters of the referendum are urging a yes vote to call for repeal, while opponents argue that the question is divisive and takes attention away from local concerns.

The effort to place the question before voters encountered opposition at the Oak Park Township Annual Town Meeting in April. More than 350 attendees voted against having the township put it on the ballot. Oak Parkers for Free Speech subsequently collected more than 3,500 signatures to pursue a place on the November ballot through the village of Oak Park.

Two objectors challenged the petition before the village’s Electoral Board, questioning the signatures and whether signers had been verified as registered village voters. In August, the board voted 2-1 to retain the question, with Trustee James Taglia dissenting. Trustee Chibuike Enyia and village President Vicki Scaman also served on the board. Village Clerk Christina Waters did not vote after having signed the petition. The Cook County Circuit Court upheld the question’s inclusion, and the Illinois Appellate Court affirmed the board’s decision in October.

Oak Park Neighbors United, which is campaigning for a no vote, formed in September after the circuit court ruling and before the appeal reached the appellate court. The group describes the referendum as discriminatory, divisive and distracting. Spokesperson Mark Segal said Oak Park should concentrate on issues directly affecting residents, including a zoning ordinance that has drawn community concerns and the future of West Suburban Medical Center.

Segal also said the referendum would leave many Jewish residents feeling unwelcome in Oak Park. Members of his organization have taken their campaign to farmers markets and residents’ doors. They also plan to distribute materials encouraging no votes during early voting at Village Hall and outside polling locations on Election Day.

Jesse Bauer, of Oak Parkers for Free Speech, said the April township meeting did not capture the full range of residents’ views, motivating him to help secure a ballot question. “This is a citizen-led advisory referendum brought through that process to the ballot,” Bauer said. He and other group members are encouraging residents to vote yes.

On its website, Oak Parkers for Free Speech argues that the Illinois law conflicts with the state’s fiduciary responsibility to pension holders and infringes on First Amendment free speech rights. The organization also contends that the law lacks fiduciary guardrails and could compel public university employees, state workers, local teachers and taxpayers to sell or avoid investments for political reasons.