Today’s primary election will be the first Presidential Election to feature Election Day Registration, and the first election in Illinois where it will be available to voters at every polling place.
Election Day Registration allows unregistered voters to register and vote on Election Day in every suburban polling place. Voters must go to their designated home precinct in order to participate in Election Day Registration. Residents can find their home precinct, sample ballot and referenda (if applicable), at the Clerk’s Voter Information page, cookcountyclerk.com/VoterInfo, or via the Clerk’s mobile site, m.cookcountyclerk.com.
“Election Day Registration is a key part of the voter registration reforms we have fought hard to get into law in Illinois,” Orr said. “In our highly mobile society, we realize that there are times when people are just not registered when they go to vote. Until we have automatic voter registration in Illinois, Election Day Registration fills an important need.”
Election Day Registration was first offered as a trial program in the Nov. 4, 2014 Gubernatorial General Election. In that election, 3,604 suburban Cook County voters participated in EDR when it was available at designated (18) voting sites throughout suburban Cook County. This is the first election in which it will be offered at every polling place.
Individuals who missed the regular registration deadline in February have been able to register and vote at any of the 44 early voting sites for suburban Cook County voters.
Orr encourages all suburban Cook County voters to verify their polling place before heading to vote on Tuesday.
Any voter, registered or not registered, can find their polling place at cookcountyclerk.com/VoterInfo. Unregistered voters can search by address to find their polling place; voters who are already registered can search by their birthday or home address.
Voters planning on registering to vote or updating their voter information on Election Day must bring two forms of ID, one with a current address.
The Clerk’s office has produced a video to walk voters through the Election Day Registration process.
Voters in 48 precincts in suburban Cook County will have a new polling place for this election. Households impacted by these changes were mailed a red, white, and blue notice that included their polling place information. The list of the 48 precincts with new polling places can also be found on the Clerk’s website.
Through Sunday, 5,245 suburban Cook County voters – who had not been registered to vote – have taken part in Grace Period registration and voting
(Cook County Clerk’s Office)
EPA/Michael Reynolds
