LAKE FOREST, IL — Early voting is underway across the Chicago area for the November midterm elections, with additional early voting locations opening up on Oct. 19 in Lake Forest.
Illinois 2026 Voter Guide: Pritzker Vs. Bailey Rematch, Other Hot Races To Watch
Here's a look at what races Lake Forest voters will be weighing in on for the Nov. 3 General Election.
In Lake County, voters will decide whether to approve a 1 percent sales tax to help fund school facility improvements.
According to a sample election ballot, this is how the referendum question will read on the ballot:
"Shall a retailers' occupation tax and a service occupation tax (commonly referred to as a sales tax) be imposed in The County of Lake, Illinois, at a rate of 1% to be used exclusively for school facility purposes, school resource officers, and mental health professionals?"
Incumbent John Idleburg, a Democrat, will face Republican Challenger Roman Buchberger.
Idleburg, who has served as sheriff since 2018, previously worked as a Lake County sheriff's deputy and held law enforcement positions with the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Treasury Department. He is also a U.S. Marine Corps veteran.
Buchberger is a Zion resident with 32 years of law enforcement experience and previous police administration experience.
Incumbent Brad Schneider, a Democrat, will face off against Republican candidate Carl Lambrecht.
All Lake Forest voters will have several statewide contests on their ballots.
If you're not sure if you're registered to vote, you can check online. To register to vote, you must be a U.S. citizen who is at least 18 years old — or will be 18 by Election Day — and you must have lived in your precinct for at least 30 days prior to the election.
Online voter registration is available until Oct. 18 on the Illinois Board of Elections website. To register online, residents must have a driver's license or state ID, or a Social Security number.
Even if you miss that deadline, you can take advantage of grace period in-person voter registration at your county clerk's office or permanent early voting locations. You can also register at your polling place on Election Day.
To register in person, you'll need to bring two forms of ID, with at least one showing your current address.
Early voting locations are open now, with additional locations opening in some counties on Oct. 19. Find hours and locations here.
If you plan to vote on Election Day and don't know your polling place, you can find it here. The polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
If you want to vote by mail, you must apply online or in person by Oct. 29 through your county's election authority. Find vote-by-mail ballot applications here.
Ballots must be postmarked or placed in a dropbox by Election Day, Nov. 3, to count.
Find your local mail-in voting drop boxes here.
If you want to take a look at your local election ballot, you can do so here.
Find all of Illinois Patch's 2026 election coverage here.
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