Illinois is preparing what appears to be its strongest attempt to date to strike a deal with the Chicago Bears on legislation that would allow them to remain in the state. All signs have indicated positive momentum. The fall veto session in Springfield is about to begin. Everybody is waiting to see what happens. That includes Indiana. Illinois’ eternal neighbor to the southeast has been working for years to pry the Bears away from them. They appear to be incredibly close, but haven’t gotten the team to fully commit yet.
Those attempts may have taken a significant blow over the past couple of days. The United States held its midterm elections this week. The House of Representatives, Senate, and governor jobs were all up for grabs. It was a gigantic victory for the Democratic Party, scooping up several seats in the House and Senate and winning almost every governor’s race. Indiana certainly felt the effects. The Democrats stole one seat from the Republicans. There was an even bigger earthquake at the state level.
Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston, one of the most powerful Republicans in the state, lost re-election to challenger Lauren Cole. This is pretty significant, considering Huston was critical to the push to bring the Bears to Indiana.
Don’t undersell the setback for Indiana in the Chicago Bears sweepstakes.
Huston was pivotal to the state government passing all the necessary legislation to sway the team, making it much easier to build there. Having Huston controlling the action in the House chamber was critical for preventing any potential revolts against the idea of bringing the Bears across the border. After all, it’s going to be very expensive. A lot of people probably don’t want to fork over hundreds of millions of dollars to help a private company relocate. Suddenly, that control is in danger.
🔥 Subscribe to the Untold Chicago YouTube channel to hear Chicago legends tell stories you’ve never seen in headlines — real moments, real experiences, straight from the athletes themselves.
There won’t be nearly as much unity as there was over the past two years. It doesn’t kill Indiana’s chances by any means. However, if the Chicago Bears get the sense that people in the state are starting to sour on the idea, it may compel them to work something out with Illinois. Everything to this point has indicated that the Bears would prefer to stay put. If not, they likely would’ve moved already. That said, Indiana is a legitimate option. That confident approach they’ve stuck to since the beginning now looks shaky.
Clarity is right around the corner now.
Several key powerbrokers in Springfield have expressed optimism that a deal with the Bears is close. If they can hammer out some of the lingering details, it’s possible the legislation finally gets pushed through. From there, all the team has to do is pick a spot. Most believe they’ll just build in Arlington Heights as planned. Some believe the city of Chicago will make another run at keeping them downtown. Either way, it will be almost a foregone conclusion at that point.
Indiana has no choice but to wait it out and hope the complicated politics of Illinois come to their rescue. Not having Huston as a loud voice of support really weakens their stance. It makes things considerably harder. The last thing they can afford right now is interference. All eyes are on Springfield now. If Bears part-owner Pat Ryan has his way, a deal will be hammered out by the end of the month.
