Voting And Coronavirus: County Clerk's Offices Offer Advice

LAKE COUNTY, IL — The primary election is today in Illinois and comes at a time when the general public is being urged to practice social distancing to stop the spread of the new coronavirus. So, what does that mean for those hoping to stop out to the polls, which are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday?

Lake County Clerk Robin M. O'Connor is offering suggestion for those planning to cast their ballot for primary candidates:

• Bring your own pen to your voting site
• Be responsible for your own social distancing
• Be calm and patient with election workers. They are working a long, hard day to serve you
• Be kind to other voters casting their ballot

O'Connor is also urging voters to head to their polling place mid-day when there is typically less traffic.

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"Historically, the busiest times have been in the morning before work and the evening when people are returning home," she wrote in her Monday press release.

Meanwhile, across the state many polling sites have relocated in recent days after health and state officials issued new guidelines amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Most of the polling places that moved were originally at suburban nursing homes, senior centers and assisted living communities. In suburban Cook County, nearly three dozen polling places were relocated to the nearest of Cook County's five courthouses, Yarbough said in a statement.

In Lake County, seven voting sites needed to be relocated on Sunday and Monday. Due to the ever-changing guidelines regarding COVID-19, voters should check their clerk's office website before heading out to vote to make sure they know where there polling place is.

“With what’s been happening over the past week, voters have so much information, not all of it true or verified, coming at them from all corners,” Yarbrough said. “I cannot stress strongly enough that voters check the verified sources, such as cookcountyclerk.com, for the latest information before heading to the polling place on Tuesday.”

Here are some of the County clerk's office websites in the Chicago area:

• Kane County Clerk's Office
• McHenry County Clerk's Office
• Suburban Cook County Clerk's Office
• Lake County Clerk's Office
• City of Chicago
• DuPage County
• City of Aurora Election Commission
• Kendall County Clerk's Office
• Will County Clerk's Office

Amid all these changes, county clerk's office's are also facing a massive shortage in election judges. Due to COVID-19 concerns, several election judges have opted to stay home instead of work at the polls.

Over the weekend, Yarbrough issued a call for voters who want to help this election, offering to waive the training class requirement for new election judges. Anyone who is willing to work Tuesday can fill out an application at the clerk’s website and will be paid $150 for their work.

“The response to our call for Election Judges has been great and we’ve been getting new Election Judge applications all morning Monday,” Yarbrough said. “If anyone can serve on Tuesday, go to cookcountyclerk.com and fill out the application. And once you are assigned a spot, please show up. We will make this election work."

Other county clerks are urging patience during today's primary. While Lake County has been able to replace some of its poll workers, O'Connor said they are "expecting busy voting sites which may cause long lines."

Meanwhile, early voting numbers have reached a record high. Officials have been urging early voting as a way to curb the onslaught of voters on Election Day amid COVID-19 concerns. Through the end of the day on Sunday, early voting ballots in Cook County were 25 percent higher than the total for the entire early voting period in the 2016 presidential primary.

The early voting totals are also a record high for any presidential primary held in suburban Cook County, according to the county clerk's office.

The number of voters who chose to vote from their homes could also set a record for a presidential primary. The clerk’s office has received 58,736 applications for mail ballots. In the 2016 primary, 33,000 voters requested mail ballots and 31,409 of them cast their votes by mail, according to the Cook County Clerk's Office.

In Lake County, nearly 50,000 residents have already cast their ballot through voting by mail and early voting. But that still leaves over 400,000 citizens who need to vote on Election Day.

“I am inspired by the response of suburban Cook County voters,” Yarbrough said. “In the midst of such challenging circumstances this election, they have shown their belief in our democracy and concern for their neighbors by participating before Election Day in record numbers.”

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