A proposed amendment to the Illinois Constitution that would have made it more difficult to expand public employee retirement benefits has failed.
With about 90% of the vote reported on Wednesday morning the proposed amendment had support from 56% of Illinoisans who voted on the measure. But that fell short of the two criteria needed for passage.
The measure needed either three-fifths of Illinoisans who voted on the measure, or 50% of the total number of votes cast in Tuesday's election. Nearly 5 million people voted in the election.
The amendment would require a three-fifths vote instead of a simple majority for any pension increase. To the consternation of public employee unions, cutting benefits would still require just a simple majority.