Peoria City Councilman John Kelly is challenging Mayor Rita Ali with four City Council seats, City Treasurer and Township Supervisor also on the ballot
Consolidated election April 1
April Community Word at newsstands now!
Labor roundup: Workers United agrees to mediation with Starbucks
Costco avoids big box store strike; Illinois law protects warehousers; Trump purges NLRB
Inland Art: Creative curations
Bradley International Print and Drawing Exhibition has quite a collection on display throughout city
Bill Knight: Here’s to our absent friends, better times, and baseball
To rekindle my love for the game before Major League Baseball starts March 18 with the Cubs playing the Dodgers in Tokyo, I’m re-reading some of the great comments about baseball that three late pals and I shared in 20 years of pilgrimages to Opening Day at Wrigley Field
Straight Talk: Scandals, scandals and we have a new Health Department
Hats off to WAZU’s morning radio show for the outstanding news coverage; plus sizing up Bradley basketball crowds
House representatives decry ‘heartless and cruel administration’
Congressional representatives Raja Krishnamoorthi and Nikki Budzinski, who both grew up in Peoria, spoke at the Itoo Hall on Presidents Day
Schools in Illinois could be affected by weakening Dept. of Eductation
The Department of Education has about 4,000 employees, helping students with special needs and children from low-income households, plus managing student loans and collecting and distributing research on learning, teaching and testing
What will cuts to education mean to Peoria schools?
WCBU analysis: ‘Things changing so rapidly we’re not sure what to plan for’ in new Trump administration
Xavier Jackson: Time to wipe all that cheeseburger off our faces, Cuz
My declining years have led me to believe very strongly that any path that leads to righteousness must include the path of peace. I’m going to try to love everyone!
The Watch: PCAPS, ICC earn big boosts from their boards
County Board approves its federal legislative lobby agenda; Dunlap school district ready for review; Airport Authority update
League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria observers attend and report on local government meetings
West Peoria News: West Side St. Patrick’s parade is back
West Peoria will also put on Labor Day Parade; New Life needs volunteers to distribute food
The Watch: City discusses causes, solutions for unhoused
Peoria will reimburse LULA, NFP and is looking at utilizing Phoenix Community Development and Labor Temple via Salvation Army
The Watch: Sanitary District ponies up for some major sewage projects
Greater Peoria Sanitary District spending $2,164,288 on Grease Receiving Facility and $4,404,831 on Spring, Caroline Gate Controls
Bird flu, migration & you: Skepticism, responses, vaccines in today’s society
Poll: New strains of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza are prey to conspiracy theories just like with COVID
Nature Rambles: Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza spreading in animals
Take care: HPAI virus strains are now a part of ‘our new normal.’ We will need to adapt our agricultural practices to meet this new challenge. We can only hope that wild bird populations will build some type of immunity, or that the virus evolves to be less lethal to its host.
Arts Alerts: Way Down Wanders reopen Scottish Rite; tour Flanagan, Pettingill-Morron houses
‘Bad Luck at the Irish Wake’ murder mystery at Wildlife Prairie Park; Union Avenue and Vinyl Tap ‘Live at the Five Spot’ — Daredevil, Mickey 17, Black Flag, Ash, Snow White hitting your screens
Voter turnout can be key, but it’s often disappointing
United States sagging in middle of the pack as far as participation in the electoral process: Peoria County has about 135,265 people age-eligible to vote, and since the Peoria Election Commission reports 117,217 registered voters, more than 18,000 Peoria County adults are not even registered.
The Lion’s Den: A new Southern Strategy projecting itself on 2025
So, has the world changed, and what was lost now forgotten? Could those things have stayed the same and only forgotten? Maybe those things weren’t forgotten, only reimagined and introduced to a new generation.
The Watch: Primary preventing early voting; check out ElectionStats
Certification for the primary will be March 12. By statute, early voting should begin March 7, but 18 counties cannot start early voting until March 17
News analysis: Local media primary coverage decent, April 1 more challenging
Years ago, election nights were “all hands on deck” in newsrooms. This week the Peoria Election Commission posted primary results at 8:34 p.m. Tuesday. WMBD-TV 31 posted a good story about the unofficial results 22 minutes later. Within hours, WEEK-TV 25 and WCBU-FM 89.9 filed stories on Mayor Rita Ali and John Kelly apparently getting the most votes