FAQ's - Voting

The next election in Illinois is the Primary, on June 28, 2022. Early Voting and Voting By Mail will happen for several weeks before that. The General Election (the "mid-terms") is on November 8, 2022.

There are many resources to learn about which candidates are on your ballot for each election. Some are non-partisan resources and some explicitly endorse candidates. Here are just a few:

https://BallotReady.org

https://IllinoisVoterGuide.org (this is a resource produced by the League of Women Voters of Illinois)

https://Vote411.org

Use the Illinois State Board of Elections website to find out about early voting in your jursidiction. You can also review this one-page PDF for a summary.

Some jurisdictions have their own websites, that might be easier to use.

Each election clerk around the state administers their own elections. Therefore, the process for requesting a mail-in ballot will vary depending on where you live in Illinois. There is some general information provided on the Illinois Board of Elections website.

If you live in Chicago, you can get vote by mail information here. (nothing will be available until spring 2022)

If you live in suburban Cook County, you can get vote by mail information here. (nothing will be available until spring 2022)

Each election clerk around the state administers their own elections, and this includes polling places. You'll need to go to the website for your own county or jurisdiction to find out where you can vote.

If you live in Chicago, you can find your polling place here. (Note that polling places might be different in 2022 than they were in 2020, because of covid and other considerations.) Early polling places will be available here, as of May 2022.

In suburban cook county, you can find your polling place here, both for Election Day and for Early Voting. (Note that polling places might be different in 2022 than they were in 2020, because of covid and other considerations.) This was the list of early polling places around Cook County for the 2021 election. These may change for the 2022 elections.

This information will become available closer to the June, 2022 primary.

All polls in the State of Illinois are open from 6am to 7pm. This includes Election Day as well as all days of Early Voting in a given jurisdiction.

To vote in Illinois, you must:

• be a US citizen

• be 18 years old

  • If you're 17, but you will be 18 by the time of the General Election (the next General Election in Illinois is November 8, 2022), then you can vote in the Illinois Primary, happening on June 28, 2022. You can register to vote as soon as you turn 17, if you will be 18 by the Nov 8th, 2022 Election Day.

• be a resident of the precinct for more than 30 days prior to election day.

If you are a felon, you can probably still vote in Illinois. See below.

If you are unhoused, you can still vote in Illinois. See below.

Nope! Illinois is a very progressive state, that wants all of its citizens to vote. For that reason, we don't make you go through the hassle of obtaining, finding and bringing an ID just so you can exercise your Constitutional right to vote.

UNLESS ... this is your very first time voting in the State of Illinois. Then the answer is maybe, and it depends on what method you used to register. See the next question for more info.

This Illinois State Board of Elections PDF download provides more information.

It depends on how you registered to vote. To be safe, bring 2 forms of ID: Note that neither one of them has to be a photo ID.

1. something that has your current address on it, meaning the address where you're registered to vote (lease or mortgage, utility bill less than 30 days old, any piece of US mail addressed to your name and address within 30 days)

2. any other form of ID (passport, social security card, bank statement, paycheck, FOID card, driver's license, state ID, student ID, public aid ID card, credit card, birth certificate - even your shiny new voter ID card that you just recently got!)

If you provided your valid IL driver's license or State ID when you registered (for example, if you registered online), AND the state Board of Elections was able to match that number to one at the DMV database, then you will not need to show ID at the polls. This is true even if the claimed registration address does not match the DMV address. (People find this surprising, but it's true.)

If you were registered by a deputy voter registrar (they would have given you a carbon-copy of the half-sheet form they filled out), you had to show them two IDs at the time. Therefore, you will not need to show any ID at the polls either.

If you registered using the "motor voter" form (a full-size white sheet that you might have filled out at the DMV, or someone at a voter registration event might have helped you fill out) you had the option of providing: 1) a driver's license or state ID number 2) the last 4 digits of your social security number 3) neither. If you selected #1, you're all set. You will not need to provide additional ID when you go to vote. If you selected #2, then you will need to provide one additional form of identification when you go to the polls. This identification must show your address (see list above). If you selected #3, then you will need to provide two forms of identification when you vote, one of which must show your address and the other of which can be anything. Note that neither form of ID has to be a photo ID.

This Illinois State Board of Elections PDF download provides more information.

Download this Federal form, the Federal Post Card Application.

You can find additional information at FVAP.gov

YES, in many cases. If you've already served your time, Illinois returns your citizenship rights to you, including your right to vote.

If you are still awaiting trial, you are eligible to vote. The omnibus voting bill passed by the Illinois Legislature in July, 2021 created the opportunity for all jails to offer polling places. Cook County Jail has had a polling place for some time now.

If you are in prison finishing a sentence, then you are not eligible to vote.

Here's more information from the ACLU about voting if you've got a criminal record.

YES! Once you've registered to vote (see this page for more information about how to register if you're unhoused), then you vote the same way anyone else would:

• You can vote in person at your polling place on Election Day.

• You can vote in person at any Early Polling Place, during the Early Voting period.

• You can request a vote by mail ballot, if there is someplace you can reliably receive mail. You can have your ballot sent to someplace other than the address where you're registered to vote, if that would be useful for you.

Every eligible Illinois resident can vote. Illinois State Board of Elections PDF download explains all the ways and dates to register, and to vote.

• What forms of ID are required to vote?

• Am I eligible to vote?

• 
  

Illinois does not require photo ID. The first time you vote you may be asked to show two forms of ID, one of which demonstrates your current residence address. In the box below is the standard list. A few notes:

• If using a utility bill, it must be recent. (30 days)

• Any recent postmarked mail that is delivered to you, showing name & address, will work.

• The Certificate of Registration ("Voter Card") that was mailed to you is good evidence. But it is not required.

If you have supplied your drivers license or state ID number, on the online OVA website or on a mail-in application, you probably will not be asked to show ID (even if it's the first time you vote.)