Early voting for Illinois primary expands across Chicago, Cook County

CHICAGO - Voters across Chicago and the rest of Cook County will have more places to cast a ballot in person starting this week ahead of the March 19 primary election.

Beginning Monday, early voting sites will open in each of the city’s 50 wards, while 53 sites will open at dozens of village halls, courthouses, community centers and other venues across the suburbs.

Chicago residents can vote early at any site in the city, and suburban residents can do so at any site in the county, regardless of their addresses. That changes on Election Day, when residents voting in person must do so at their home precincts.

Chicago’s early voting sites — which join two Loop sites that have been open since mid-February — will be open 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on weekdays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sundays.

The county sites will be open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sundays through March 18.

Residents also have until March 14 to request a mail ballot, which must be postmarked by March 19. Secure drop boxes for completed mail ballots are available at early voting sites.

Register to vote by mail in Chicago Register to vote by mail in suburban Cook County

More than 163,000 Chicagoans so far have applied to vote by mail, as have 84,000 suburbanites, election officials said.

City and county officials are still looking for more poll workers, who can make from $170-255 in the city and $250-400 in the suburbs.

Suburban locations are listed on the Cook County Clerk’s website. Here’s a list of early voting sites in Chicago: