Voting in Illinois

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All voters are eligible to vote absentee/by mail in Illinois; no excuse is needed.

Illinois offers in-person early voting. No excuse is needed to vote early. Early voting begins on the 40th day before the election and ends on the day before the election.

Illinois has open primaries. In a primary election, you must select one political party ballot to vote or request a non-partisan ballot (public questions only) if available. You have the freedom to change your party choice in each primary election. 17-year-olds can vote in the primary election if they will be 18 by the corresponding general election.

ID is not required to vote in Illinois. However, if you are registering to vote during Grace Period registration, you must provide two forms of ID. If you register by mail, your identity is sufficiently proven by submission of your driver's license number or State identification card number. If you do not have either of those, you must provide at the polls two forms of ID, one of which must show your address that you are registering from. Valid forms of ID include:
- A current and valid photo identification
- Utility bill
- Bank statement
- Government check
- Paycheck
- Student ID accompanied by a copy of your contract, a lease for a residence, or mail addressed to you at your current residence address
- Other government document that shows your name and address

If you are required to show ID at the polls but do not bring it, you can vote with a provisional ballot and submit additional information to the election authority no later than the close of business on the Tuesday following the election. The election authority has 14 days following the election to determine voter eligibility, and thus if the ballot should be counted. The provisional voter may find out if their ballot was counted, or if it was not counted, the reason that it was not counted. If the ballot is not counted, the provisional voter affidavit will be used as a registration application and the voter will be sent a voter registration ID card.