By Townhall Chicago News Staff
Expanded in-person early voting for the Nov. 3 general election opened Monday at sites in all 50 Chicago wards, dramatically broadening access for voters beyond the two downtown locations that have been open since Sept. 24.
The expansion gives every neighborhood in the city a convenient option to cast a ballot ahead of Election Day, according to the Chicago Board of Elections’ election calendar. The board had been operating early voting only at the New Downtown Voting Supersite at 137 S. State St. and its offices at 69 W. Washington St. since late September.
Each ward now has a designated early voting location staffed with bilingual voting officials in multiple languages depending on the ward’s demographics. Voters in any ward can cast a ballot at any early voting site in the city, regardless of where they live, according to the board.
Ballots are available in 12 languages on touchscreen voting machines: English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Polish, Korean, Tagalog, Gujarati, Urdu, Arabic, Ukrainian and Russian, according to the board’s early voting page.
Same Day Registration is available at all early voting sites. Voters who need to register or update their name or address can do so with two forms of identification, at least one showing their current address.
The Nov. 3 ballot includes races for U.S. Senator, Illinois governor and lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, comptroller, treasurer, members of Congress, state legislators, Cook County Board president, Cook County clerk, sheriff, treasurer, assessor and county commissioners, according to the board. Voters will also decide on judicial retention questions and any state, city or local referenda.
Online voter registration closed Sunday, Oct. 18, making in-person Same Day Registration the only remaining option for unregistered voters, according to the election calendar.
The last day to apply to Vote By Mail is Oct. 29. Voters who have already cast a ballot during early voting may not return to amend, change or undo that ballot for any reason. Attempting to vote more than once in the same election is a felony, according to the board.
Ward-level sites include libraries, parks, churches, community colleges and medical facilities across the city. Locations range from the Goldblatts Building at 1615 W. Chicago Ave. in the 1st Ward to the Northtown Library at 6800 N. Western Ave. in the 50th Ward, according to the board’s published list.
On Election Day, Nov. 3, polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters on that day may cast a ballot at either their assigned precinct polling place or at any of 51 Vote Centers open citywide, according to the board.
The Chicago Board of Elections is located at 69 W. Washington St. and can be reached at (312) 269-7900.
