Civics & Voting

Dates to know:

• November 3, 2020: Election Day; voter registration available at your voting location
• October 29, 2020:  Last day to request a mail ballot
• October 19 to November 2, 2020: early voting period
• October 18, 2020: deadline to register to vote online
• October 7 to November 2, 2020: grace period registration and voting
• October 6, 2020: deadline to register to vote by paper application

If you are interested in becoming an election judge to work on election day, you can apply online.

Register to vote online, by mail or in person, including at the library. Find instructions and additional locations on this page. You can also register to vote on Election Day at your polling place.

• Your Voter Information: find your polling location, sample ballots for upcoming elections and your elected officials. 
• Mail Ballots: Any registered suburban Cook County voter may request a mail ballot.  The deadline to apply is five days before an election.  Learn more about voting by mail here.
• Secure dropboxes for mail ballots are available around Cook County.
• Instructions for how to vote using voting machines in Illinois: Video
• Illinois Board of Elections: Voting Instructions and Assistance

If you encounter issues while voting, Illinois Legal Aid Online highlights relevant resources.

• Chicago Sun Times Election Voting Guide: Summary of Endorsements; Printable Quick Guide to Judicial Evaluations by area Bar Associations (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Chicago Tribune Election Guide articles: Printable Quick Guide (including judges)
• Daily Herald news, endorsements, profiles: Summary of Endorsements; Summary of Judicial Endorsement by Area Bar Associations
• Journal & Topics election articles

These tools offer information on judicial candidates:

• Illinois State Bar Association Judicial Evaluations
• Chicago Bar Association Judicial Evaluations

For additional information on candidates and races, some organizations also perform fact checking and publish articles:

• Ballotpedia Illinois:  A nonpartisan and nonprofit online encyclopedia of American politics and elections.
• Politifact Illinois:  A Pulitzer Prize-winning, fact-checking website.

• Follow state law at the Illinois General Assembly and track bills with their Legislative Reports.
• Track federal legislation in both the House of Representatives and Senate at Congress.gov.
• Congressional Research Service Reports from the Library of Congress are now available to the public. These reports examine issues from all perspectives to inform lawmakers throughout the process of drafting, debating, passing and enacting legislation.