As votes continued to be tallied Wednesday, returns showed Illinois Democrats would hold every statewide elected office and maintain supermajorities in the General Assembly while extending their majority on the Illinois Supreme Court.

After a fiery election night speech in which Gov. JB Pritzker excoriated the Republican Party as “unwilling to expel the extremists in their midst,” he gave an upbeat news conference about his plans for a second term Wednesday at the Marriott Marquis hotel in Chicago that was the site of his election night party the day prior.

Nobody likes “For Lease” signs filling the windows on Main Street. The result of a bust in the economic cycle, mass business closures and unemployment are the extreme conclusion that political candidates swear to fight every time we have an election.

But as our state and national economy move into a recession, it’s alarming that elected lawmakers are seemingly doing more to bring on the hardship than prevent it.

A monthslong delay in the mailing of Cook County property tax bills has been resolved: Bills will be posted online as soon as Tuesday, mailed by Dec. 1 and due by Dec. 30.

Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas, who is responsible for sending out the bills and collecting payment, told the Tribune her team is running tests this weekend to post bills Tuesday, “assuming there’s no glitches,” or Wednesday.

Since 1999, Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27th) has reported investing $375,000 of the $4.2 million in campaign contributions he’s gotten from political supporters — but $300,000 of the invested money has disappeared from his campaign-finance reports, a Chicago Sun-Times investigation has found.

A key city panel rejected a proposal Thursday to ban no-knock warrants and restrict how Chicago police officers can raid homes that was backed by Anjanette Young, the Chicago woman who was handcuffed while naked by officers who ignored her pleas for help during a botched raid in February 2019.

The Chicago City Council’s Public Safety Committee voted 4-10 to reject the proposal introduced by Alds. Maria Hadden (49th Ward) and Pat Dowell (3rd Ward) eight months ago.

State Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield announced on Friday that he will resign from his post prior to start of the 103rd General Assembly next year.

Butler, who has served as a representative of the 87th House District, since 2015, faced no general election competition in the race for the 95th District. The district includes parts of Sangamon, Christian and Macon counties. The decision to resign comes as he plans to work full-time with the Illinois Railroad Association.