Illinois: Biss pushes for automatic voter registration | Evanston Now

Legislation being filed this week in Springfield sponsored by Sen. Daniel Biss (D-Evanston) would automatically register to vote any Illinois resident with a valid driver’s license or state-issued ID. “Voting is a constitutionally protected right and civic duty,” Biss said in a statement. “While some states are making it more difficult for voters to exercise that right, this legislation will empower Illinoisans and encourage a truly representative democracy in Illinois.” A co-sponsor of the bill, Sen. Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill), said the proposal would streamline and simplify voter registration and make the process more efficient for taxpayers.

Illinois: Vendor suing DuPage County election commission | Daily Herald

A DuPage County judge is being asked to decide whether the county’s election commission failed to give a San Diego-based company a fair opportunity to compete for a contract. Votec Corp. initially filed a protest with the county’s procurement office after the DuPage County Election Commission in November awarded Hart InterCivic a nearly $500,000 deal to supply the commission with electronic poll books, which are computerized logs to check in voters at the polls. Votec claimed in its protest that the election commission “violated and/or failed to adhere to” its procurement ordinance when it awarded the contract. But after reviewing Votec’s protest, the county’s chief procurement officer, John Meneghini, rejected it. Then an appeal of Meneghini’s decision was denied by commission Chairwoman Cathy Ficker Terrill.

Illinois: Group starts new bid to put redistricting on 2016 ballot | Associated Press

A coalition of business, clergy and civic leaders has launched a petition drive and fundraising efforts for a 2016 ballot question aimed at changing how Illinois draws political boundaries, an initiative group officials said Tuesday builds on a previous failed attempt. Independent Maps, which wants to take the mapmaking process out of the hands of politicians and give it to an independent commission, said the state’s once-a-decade process of redistricting is too political. The group bills itself as nonpartisan and board members include former Tribune Co. CEO Dennis FitzSimons, former White House chief of staff Bill Daley, the Rev. Byron Brazier of Chicago’s Apostolic Church of God and former Playboy Enterprises CEO Christie Hefner.

Illinois: Special election forces decision on same-day voter registration | Herald and Review

State lawmakers are trying to help county clerks manage the upcoming special election for former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock’s seat in Congress. But with the clock ticking on the July 7 special primary election, some clerks in the 18th Congressional District say the deadline for action by the General Assembly has passed already. Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray said Tuesday that he is moving ahead with plans to comply with a new law requiring counties to allow voters to register and vote on election day at each polling place.”I don’t have time to waste,” Gray said. “I think all of us have that same mindset,” Logan County Clerk Sally Turner said.

Illinois: Some clerks moving forward with Schock election | Bloomington Pentagraph

State lawmakers are trying to help county clerks cope with a new voter registration law for the upcoming special election for former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock’s seat in Congress. But with the clock ticking on the July 7 special primary election, some clerks in the 18th Congressional District say the deadline for action by the General Assembly already has passed. Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray said Tuesday he is moving ahead with plans to comply with the new law requiring counties to allow voters to register and vote on the day of the election at each polling place. “I don’t have time to waste,” Gray said.

Illinois: Justice intercedes for Illinois military, overseas voters | Military Times

Justice Department officials have reached an agreement with Illinois election officials to help ensure military members, their family members and U.S. citizens living overseas get their absentee ballots in time to vote in the upcoming special primary election and special election. The special election is being held to fill the vacant seat in the 18th congressional district resulting from the resignation of Republican Rep. Aaron Schock on March 31. The agreement establishes July 7 as the date for the special primary election; and Sept. 10 as the date for the special election. Under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Voting Act, election officials must transmit ballots to military and overseas voters at least 45 days before the upcoming election, including special elections.

Illinois: Unfunded mandate and special election puts pressure on counties | CIProud

Counties across the 18th district are tightening their wallets. Between government cuts, unfunded mandates, and now, the special election, counties across the region are scrambling to meet certain requirements. Tazewell County officials say the special election will run them close to $200,000, aand this is on top of an upcoming unfunded mandate putting counties like Tazewell in a tough spot. “We’re kind of up against the gun right now,” Tazewell County Board Chairman David Zimmerman said. A new mandate from the state requires all counties to have same day voter registration by June 1st. “We’re going to have to have a computer or a tablet plus a hotspot or an air card in every one of these facilities,” Zimmerman said.

Illinois: Schock Donor Sues Ex-US Congressman Seeking Reimbursement | Associated Press

Former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock’s legal problems expanded Wednesday as a contributor sued to force the repayment of millions of campaign dollars, saying he was tricked into believing the young lawmaker who has since resigned amid questions about his spending was “a breath of fresh air” in a corruption-riddled state. The unusual lawsuit filed by Howard Foster, a Chicago lawyer who pitched in just $500 to Schock, cites Illinois’ long history of political and financial shenanigans — from a pre-Civil War governor to former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.’s recent prison term for misusing campaign funds — and plants Schock among them in claiming his fundraising arm was a corrupt racket. One election-law expert said he’s never seen such a lawsuit and predicted legal obstacles.

Illinois: Woodford may also ask Aaron Schock to help defray cost of special election and primary | Peoria Journal Star

Woodford County could become the second county in the 18th Congressional District to ask former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock to pony up for special election expenses. The county finance committee approved Monday a measure that will be taken before the full board next month that, if approved, will make a request to Schock to reimburse the county up to $125,000 in costs for a primary and election to replace him. Schock’s resignation became effective April 1, vacating the seat the Peoria Republican held in Congress for six years. His replacement must be selected by his constituents in a costly election not planned during the last budget cycle.

Illinois: Election Board rejects pre-marked ballot claims | Hyde Park Herald

The Chicago Board of Elections has dismissed claims of pre-marked ballots at the polls after a Hyde Park voter said he received one for Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Sam Dreessen, who canvassed for Chuy Garcia and voted for him at Kozminski Elementary School, 936 E. 54th St., reported the incident on Facebook Tuesday morning. “I was really surprised, because I have been voting in Chicago since 2006 and I’ve never had an experience like that,” said Dreessen, whose post was covered in In These Times magazine and as of Wednesday afternoon had been shared more than 1,000 times.

Illinois: Marshall County sends Aaron Schock a bill for special election costs | Journal Star

The Marshall County Board wants former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock to pay the $76,000 in unbudgeted county costs for special elections to fill the 18th Congressional District seat he abandoned. The board voted unanimously Thursday to send the Peoria Republican a letter requesting the reimbursement. Schock resigned last month following controversy over his use of taxpayer and campaign funds. The costs for the special primary and general election have been estimated at $38,000 each, officials said. In a vein somewhat similar to a collection letter, the board offers Schock options of sending either the full amount or an agreement stating that he will pay later.

Illinois: Chicago mayor’s race: Why you aren’t voting from a smartphone | Chicago Tribune

As Chicagoans trek to the polls Tuesday for the city’s first-ever mayoral runoff election, some may wonder why they can’t yet vote from the palms of their hands. “For me the biggest benefit of online voting would be convenience,” said K.C. Horne, a 26-year-old accountant from Edgewater. “If I can file my taxes from my phone, I should be able to vote from my phone.” But so far, both technological and legislative hurdles have sharply limited the use of online voting. One major difference: The need to keep the user’s identity secret makes filing ballots different from other secure online transactions. “It’s an unconventional transaction where you have to be able to do business with me, but I can’t know exactly what you’re buying,” said Chicago Board of Election Commissioners spokesman Jim Allen.

Illinois: Rauner remaking election board | Quad City Times

Gov. Bruce Rauner replaced a longtime state election regulator Wednesday. In paperwork filed with the Illinois Secretary of State, the Republican governor announced the end of former Bloomington Mayor Jesse Smart’s 14-year tenure on the Illinois State Board of Elections. Smart, who served as mayor of Bloomington from 1985 to 1997, is being replaced by Madison County Republican Party Chairman Andy Carruthers of Edwardsville.

Illinois: Special election for Schock seat could be in August | Quad City Times

A special election to replace Aaron Schock in Congress will be later in the summer than expected after the federal government stepped in to ensure military voters have a chance to cast ballots. In action Tuesday, Gov. Bruce Rauner set the dates for the 18th Congressional District primary for June 8, but he acknowledged that it could be late June or early July once negotiations with the U.S. Department of Justice conclude. The Republican governor set the general election for the post for July 24 but said it could be late August before balloting actually occurs.

Illinois: Special election for Schock seat has election officials worried | The Southern

A new law allowing voters to register and vote on election day has county clerks in western and central Illinois on edge. With a special election to replace scandal-plagued U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock expected to occur in June or July, the clerks say they don’t have enough time or money to get the new system up and running. “There’s no way we can be ready for that,” McLean County Clerk Kathy Michael said Friday. At issue is a pending special election in the 18th Congressional District, which had been held by Schock for eight years.

Illinois: Election to replace Aaron Schock could be first test for new countywide election commission | Peoria Journal Star

A yet-to-be-formed countywide election commission, approved by voters last fall, was supposed to have nearly a year before its first election. Not anymore. When Aaron Schock announced he was resigning from his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, that triggered a 120-day window for an election to replace the four-term Peoria Republican. And the first election, a primary, will likely occur earlier. Gov. Bruce Rauner must set a date for the elections within five days of Schock’s resignation, which is effective March 31. And it means Peoria County, already facing a possible budget shortfall next year, has to come up with about $150,000 to pay for the special elections.

Illinois: Company protesting contract awarded by DuPage election agency | Daily Herald

A San Diego-based company wants the DuPage County Election Commission to rebid a contract for electronic poll books after claiming the agency didn’t give it a fair opportunity to compete for the work. Votec Corp. filed a protest with the county’s procurement office after the election commission decided in November to award Hart InterCivic a nearly $500,000 contract to supply the commission with computerized logs to check in voters at the polls. In its protest, Votec claims the election commission “violated and/or failed to adhere to” its procurement ordinance. “They (Votec) feel that the process was not a truly full and open competition,” said Jim Rome, an attorney representing the company.

Illinois: Special election to replace U.S. Rep. Schock will be held by July | Peoria Journal Star

The 18th Congressional District will have a new representative by mid-summer. A special election to fill the seat U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock is vacating is to be held no later than July, according to state law. Schock’s resignation is effective March 31. Within five days after that, Gov. Bruce Rauner is to set a date for the special election, according to Steve Sandvoss, executive director of the Illinois State Board of Elections. The election is to be held within 115 days of the date Rauner’s office issues its notice to the clerks of the 19 counties in the 18th District, Sandvoss said. That notice is to include a date for a primary election. Nothing in state law mandates a date for the primary, nor does the election have to be on a Tuesday, Sandvoss said. “We just found out about this an hour ago,” Sandvoss said Tuesday from Springfield when asked about the vacancy. “We’re scrambling to figure out the time frames involved.”

Illinois: State lawmakers tackle election reform | The Daily American

State lawmakers are trying to remedy what they see as a broken election system that takes too long, is too invasive and has too much influence from corporate donors. Both Republicans and Democrats have introduced a group of bills to change ballot procedures, primary dates and campaign finance rules. Rep. Scott Drury, D-Highwood, introduced two of the bills, which would change the primary date for state and federal elections and allow for an open ballot. Drury’s House Bill 193 would change the primary election date to the fourth Tuesday in June. He said he heard complaints from both constituents and lawmakers about the long political process that he sees as flawed.

Illinois: Chicago Voters Endorse Campaign Finance Reform | Al Jazeera

Chicago voters endorsed by a wide margin Tuesday a plan to institute public campaign financing and limit outside contributions. The ballot measure, though non-binding, begins a process that will now move to city and state government, where legislation would be drafted. Asked whether the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois should “reduce the influence of special interest money in elections by financing campaigns using small contributions from individuals and a limited amount of public money,” voters signaled yes by a 58-point margin, 79 percent to 21 percent.

Illinois: State proposal would require county to buy laptop for each precinct | The Edwardsville Intelligencer

Madison County would be required to purchase more than 225 laptops if a proposal pending in Springfield becomes law. It would require larger counties to provide laptops at each of its precincts, and while that may be fine in Cook or DuPage counties, it’s too costly and impractical for most. If the law passes, counties with more than 200,000 residents would have to provide each precinct with an electronic poll book on Election Day, allowing voters to connect to that county’s voter registration database. But unlike many northern counties, Madison County has large pockets of rural areas that render Wi-Fi and cell tower coverage spotty in some places and non-existent in others.

Illinois: New voter system security questioned | Herald-Review

At a time when computer systems of major corporations have been under attack by hackers, Illinois is poised to join other states in a first-ever national database of voter registration information. But, despite concerns from scholars and others who monitor online security, state and national officials involved in the Electronic Registration Information Center program say every voter’s information will be safe. “We make a pretty good argument that we do more to protect the data than the states do themselves. We follow above-normal security protocols,” said John Lindback, executive director of the Washington D.C.-based program.

Illinois: Voters to be placed in nationwide database | The Southern

At a time when computer systems of major corporations have been under attack by hackers, Illinois is poised to join other states in a first-ever national database of voter registration information. But, despite concerns from scholars and others who monitor online security, state and national officials involved in the Electronic Registration Information Center program say every registered voter’s information will be safe. “We make a pretty good argument that we do more to protect the data than the states do themselves. We follow above normal security protocols,” said John Lindback the executive director of the Washington D.C.-based ERIC program. In one of his final acts as governor, former Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation that put Illinois on track to join other states in the program. The law was just one piece of a larger overhaul of state election law that included changes to absentee voting and ballot counting.

Illinois: Will county clerk: amend voter registration law | Chicago Tribune

Will County Clerk Nancy Schultz Voots continues to press state legislators for more time to implement a new law requiring all county clerks to provide Election Day registration in all precincts by the March 2016 election. She has provided them with a cost study, detailing that it would cost Will County more than $1.3 million to buy electronic equipment, implement the technology and train election judges to provide registration in all 303 precincts. “They should have done a cost study before implementing the law,” she said after presenting her figures to the county board’s finance committee Tuesday.

Illinois: Lawmaker: Close East St. Louis Election Board | St. Louis Public Radio

There’s a new effort underway to shut down the East St. Louis Election Board. Illinois State Rep. Dwight Kay (R-Glen Carbon) is sponsoring a bill to close it. Kay’s district includes portions of Madison and St. Clair County, but not East St. Louis. If the bill passes, the St. Clair County Clerk will take over responsibility for elections in East St. Louis. “Illinois is sort of at a brink here when it comes to its finances,” Kay said. “And I think we are doing ourselves a disfavor by continuing to fund two separate offices when it comes to counting ballots and doing the work of the county clerk when he could be doing the work himself.” Kay said that closing the election board could save East St. Louis more than $400,000 a year.

Illinois: Kane County to investigate disbanding Aurora Election Commission | Daily Herald

Just when it looked like officials would create the first written, mutual agreement spelling out the funding and operation of the Aurora Election Commission, Kane County Board members said Thursday they would rather work toward disbanding it. Kane County Chief Judge Judith Brawka began working with the commission and the city of Aurora in July 2013 to resolve conflicts about the commission’s funding. As it stands, Aurora and Kane County are required to fund the commission. Kane County kicks in about $400,000 a year, and Aurora’s commitment is more than $600,000. But neither taxing body has authority to set the commission’s budget, which has resulted in multiple late bill payments.

Illinois: Will County makes plans to fight voter registration law | The Herald-News

Brent Hassert, lobbyist for the Will County Board, said the county should act fast to persuade lawmakers to lessen the blow associated with new legislation requiring same-day voter registration. “Time is of the essence. We can’t drag our feet. [Let’s bring lawmakers] up to speed on our concerns,” Hassert told members of the County Board’s Legislative and Policy Committee on Tuesday.

Illinois: Special election law en route to suit? Maybe not | GateHouse News Service

Let the lawsuits begin – maybe. As everyone knows, the General Assembly passed a bill last week that will force a special election to fill the state comptroller’s office in 2016. Failed Republican legislative candidate Leslie Munger was appointed to fill the job last Monday, but rather than serve a full 4 years, she will now have to run for election in 2 years if she wants to keep the job. During debate on the bill, Republicans repeatedly said that passing it would lead to litigation. They argued that the only valid way to provide for an early election to fill the office is to change the state constitution. Of course, because of the time it takes to change the constitution, that method would mean Munger would serve a full 4 years anyway.

Illinois: Cook County Clerk Lauds Signing Of Voter Rights Bill | Journal & Topics

About a year ago, Cook County Clerk David Orr penned an op-ed calling for a “voter registration renaissance” in Illinois. Many of the components of Orr’s “All In” plan, most notably Election Day registration and increased government agency registration, will become reality when signed into law Saturday (Jan. 10) by Gov. Pat Quinn. “It’s fitting that Gov. Quinn, a longtime champion of democracy, will sign a voting rights bill as one of his final acts,” Orr said. “We fought hard for a comprehensive package that will address year-round voter registration issues, which ultimately will enhance the accuracy of the voter rolls, increase participation and improve efficiency.” Orr commends SB 172 sponsors Speaker Michael Madigan, Leader Barbara Flynn Currie and Sen. Don Harmon, as well as President John Cullerton, for moving swiftly to adopt changes to modernize the state’s voter registration system. Orr also applauds the many voting rights groups who advocated for the changes.