Surviving the Superminority in Illinois: Rep. John Cabello at the ALEC Annual Meeting

At the 51st annual meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in Denver, Illinois State Representative John Cabello, a Republican serving as Assistant Minority Leader, spoke with Catherine Mortensen about the challenges of working in a superminority. In Illinois, where Republicans hold just 40 of 118 seats in the legislature, Cabello has found creative ways to push policy, especially with his background in law enforcement.

“You’re not the lead sponsor of the bill, but you get one of your friends from the other side of the aisle to actually introduce it,” he explained. But that only works some of the time.

When it comes to more pressing issues, like the controversial SAFE-T Act which eliminated cash bail, sometimes there are no solutions to be found.

“We passed some really bad legislation,” he told Mortensen. “It’s thrown lots of the state into some disarray, with some really bad people coming out of jail when they shouldn’t be.”

But success can be found when working across the aisle. He gave an example of a law he spearheaded that allows certain non-violent felons to petition the court to seal their records if they meet specific criteria, such as furthering their education while incarcerated and successfully completing probation.

Cabello explained his motivation behind the bill, stating, “I see the recidivism rate very high, and we’re trying to find ways of breaking the cycle, to have people come out of prison to be productive members of society.”

The legislation aims to give people a chance to reintegrate into society without the label of “felon” hindering their ability to find employment or housing. Cabello believes this policy reflects conservative values.

“This is a perfect idea for Republicans to get behind because we are the law and order party, and we want people that come out of prison to be productive members of society.”

He also criticized the Illinois government for mandating the term “justice-impacted individuals” in place of “felons,” a change he opposes.

Despite the hurdles of working in a superminority, Cabello is focused on pushing for reforms to improve Illinois’ criminal justice system. He highlighted the importance of “being smart on crime,” which he believes is essential to breaking the cycle of recidivism. His efforts to address the negative impact of the SAFE-T Act are ongoing, with a package of bills aimed at making the law more manageable for law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges.

As Illinois continues to navigate significant criminal justice reforms, Cabello remains committed to ensuring public safety while offering second chances to those who have earned them.

“We’re trying to stop a lot of bad things in Illinois,” he said. “We know we’re not going to eliminate the Safety Act, but we’ve put together a huge package of bills that will look at the Safety Act and make it much more manageable for law enforcement, prosecutors and judges.”