8 more county boards added for midterms
Lorette Newlin persuaded 8 additional county boards to add the separation referendum to the ballot in the upcoming midterm elections.
Snapshot · Up First from NPR
The growing movement to secede from Illinois and become the 51st state
Explore episode
Jul 5, 2026
Where this was said
G.H. Merritt, Lorette Newlin, and the Seed of Separation
At 28:20 · chapter starts 27:20
As the episode nears its close, O'Neill returns to the two women who anchor the movement. Merritt explicitly disavows violence: leaving Chicago is like leaving a bad marriage to avoid killing your partner, she says. Newlin's framing is different — quieter, more stubborn, and arguably more powerful. She doesn't think about failure. She's a farm girl. You plant seeds without knowing the weather, the price, or what storms will come. You plant anyway. And she keeps planting: 8 more county boards have agreed to put the separation referendum on the ballot in the upcoming midterm elections. [1] — Connor Towne O'Neill "8 more county boards added for midterms: Lorette Newlin persuaded 8 additional county boards to add the separation referendum to the ballot…" 28:20 O'Neill's closing question — what happens to all that energy if this doesn't work? — hangs unanswered, because for Newlin it simply isn't a question worth asking. The seeds are in the ground.
Lorette Newlin: Plant the Seed Anyway
Lorette Newlin doesn't spend time thinking about failure. A self-described farm girl, she plants seeds without knowing what storms or prices are coming. That's how she approaches Illinois separation — and she's already convinced 8 more county boards to put it on the midterm ballot.
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