Steve Hagerty:  Democrats should expand ballot access here, too

Last fall, I signed petitions for several Democratic candidates seeking to succeed Jan Schakowsky in Congress. There was only one seat, to fill but there was more than one person worth hearing from. Signing their petitions did not mean promising each of them my vote. It meant believing they deserved an opportunity to make their case, and that voters deserved the opportunity to consider them. Illinois law allowed that. This summer when candidates began collecting signatures for Evanston’s next mayor, I would have liked to do the same. More than one person deserved a place on the ballot. This time, Illinois law said no. In an established political party’s primary, a qualified voter may sign petitions for multiple candidates seeking the same office within that party. In Evanston’s nonpartisan mayoral election, a voter may sign only one candidate’s petition. Same voter. Same intention. Different rules. With mayoral petitions due last Monday, the process now enters the