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Illinois early voting gets underway for 2026 primary races

By Alex Ortiz
Published  February 4, 2026 1:17pm CST
News
FOX 32 Chicago

The Brief

    • Early voting for the Illinois primary election begins this month.
    • While Election Day is March 17, there are multiple opportunities for voters to cast their ballots well beforehand.
    • Offices at the federal, state, and local levels are up for grabs in the 2026 midterms.

CHICAGO - Early voting in Illinois' 2026 primary election gets underway this month across the Chicago area with races for federal, state, and local positions on the ballot.

Primary Election Day is  March 17, but there are multiple opportunities for residents to cast their ballots well before then in person or via the mail.

Here is some basic information for early voting by county.

Chicago

Early voting in Chicago begins on Feb. 12 at two locations in the city's downtown area:

  • 137 S. State Street – This is the new location for the downtown voting supersite.
  • 69 W. Washington Street, 6th floor

Then, on March 2, early voting opens at sites in all 50 wards.

Any voter who lives in Chicago can vote at any of the early voting sites, no matter where they live in the city. All early voting sites are ADA-compliant and accessible to voters with disabilities, according to the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.

Ballots are available in 12 different languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Polish, Korean, Tagalog, Gujarati, Urdu, Arabic, Ukrainian, and Russian. 

Voters can request a mail-in ballot. The deadline to apply for a mail-in ballot is March 12 at 5 p.m.

Visit chicagoelections.gov to learn more about early voting requirements and locations.

Suburban Cook County

Early voting in suburban Cook County begins on March 2 at more than 50 locations around the county.

Visit the Cook County Clerk’s Office website to learn about specific early polling locations and hours.

Voters can also request a mail-in ballot by requesting one online.

DuPage County

Early voting in DuPage County will begin the week of Feb. 9 at five temporary voting locations:

  • Addison Township Office, 401 N. Addison Road, Addison
  • Bartlett Community Center, 700 S. Bartlett Road, Bartlett
  • Downers Grove Village Hall, 850 Curtiss Street, Downers Grove
  • DuPage County Fairgrounds, 2015 Manchester Road, Wheaton
  • Naperville Municipal Center, 400 S. Eagle Street, Naperville

The temporary early voting sites will be open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays with no Sunday hours.

Initially, early voting was tentatively scheduled to begin on Feb. 5, but as of Tuesday, Feb. 2, unresolved candidate objections pending in court pushed back the start. Such objections need to be resolved to finalize a ballot.

Early voting will then expand at several permanent early voting locations starting on March 2, which will be open seven days a week, including 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.

Voters can also request a mail-in ballot. The last day that the clerk's office can send out a mail-in ballot is March 5. 

Visit the DuPage County Clerk’s Office website for more on early voting requirements and sites.

Kane County

Early voting in Kane County begins on Thursday, Feb. 5 at the Kane County Elections main office and its satellite office in Aurora.

The Kane County Clerk's Office is located at 719 S. Batavia Ave, Building B, in Geneva.

The clerk's office's Aurora satellite office is located at 5 E. Downer Place.

Early voting is available Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Then on March 2, early voting at all permanent polling places, which are listed on the clerk's office's website.

Voters can also request a mail-in ballot.

Go to the Kane County Clerk’s Office website for more information on early voting locations and requirements.

Kendall County

Early voting in Kendall County will begin on Feb. 5 at the Kendall County Clerk's Office, located at 502 S. Main Street in Yorkville.

Voting will be held Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.

Oswego Village Hall, at 100 Parkes Mill in Oswego, will also host early voting starting on March 2 through March 11.

Voters can also request a mail-in ballot.

Visit the Kendall County Clerk's Office website for more information on early voting.

McHenry County

Early voting in McHenry County starts on Thursday, Feb. 5 at the McHenry County Elections Center, which is at 410 S. Eastwood Dr. in Woodstock.

Voting there will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Other early voting sites will open on March 2:

  • Algonquin Township Office, 3702 US Highway 14, Crystal Lake
  • Crystal Lake Public Library, 126 Paddock St., Crystal Lake
  • McHenry Township Office, 3703 N. Richmond Rd., Johnsburg
  • Lake in the Hills Village Hall, 600 Harvest Gate, Lake in the Hills
  • McHenry City Hall, 333 S. Green St., McHenry
  • Nunda Township Office, 3510 Bay Rd, Crystal Lake

For more information on early voting in McHenry County, visit the clerk's office website.

Lake County

Early voting in Lake County starts on Thursday, Feb. 5 at the County Clerk’s Office, 18 N. County Street in Waukegan, on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

More early voting sites will open on March 2, including:

  • Deerspring Pool, 200 Deerfield Road, Deerfield
  • Freemont Township Center, 22385 IL Route 60, Mundelein
  • Grant Township Center, 26725 W. Molidor Rd., Ingleside
  • Gurnee Village Hall, 325 N. O'Plaine Rd., Gurnee
  • History Center of Lake Forest-Lake Bluff, 509 E. Deerpath Rd., Lake Forest
  • Lake Villa Township Office, 37908 N. Fairfield Rd, Lake Villa
  • Lake County Central Permit Facility, 500 W. Winchester Rd., Libertyville
  • Village of Deer Park Vehe Barn, 23570 W. Cuba Rd., Deer Park
  • Waucaonda Township Office, 505 W. Bonner Rd., Wauconda
  • William E. Peterson Park, 16652 N. Buffalo Grove Rd., Prairie View
  • Zion City Hall, 2828 Sheridan Rd., Zion

Early voting will be held on weekdays from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. with no voting on Sundays.

Other voting sites will have extended hours:

  • Diamond Lake Recreation Center, 1016 Diamond Lake Rd., Mundelein
  • Highwood Library & Community Center, 102 Highwood Ave., Highwood
  • Lake Barrington Village Hall, 23860 N. Old Barrington Rd., Lake Barrington
  • Lake County Main Courthouse Lobby, 18 N. County St., Waukegan
  • Lilac Cottage at Bowen Park, 1911 N. Sheridan Rd., Waukegan
  • North Chicago Public Library, 2100 Argonne Dr., North Chicago
  • Round Lake Beach Village Hall, 1937 N. Municipal Way, Round Lake Beach

Voters can also request a mail-in ballot.

Visit the Lake County Clerk’s Office for more information on early voting locations.

Will County

Early voting in Will County begins Thursday, Feb. 5 at the Will County Clerk's Office, located at 302 N. Chicago Street in Joliet.

The early voting takes place on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through March 6 with expanded hours, including weekends, through March 16.

Starting in early March, early voting will expand to more than 20 locations including:

  • City of Braidwood, 141 W. Main St., Braidwood
  • City of Naperville, 300 S. Eagle St., Naperville
  • Crete Township, 1367 Wood St., Crete
  • Fountaindale Public Library, 300 W. Briarcliff Rd., Bolingbrook
  • Frankfort Public Library, 21119 S. Pfeiffer Rd., Frankfort
  • Governors State University Hantack House, 1 University Pkwy., University Park
  • Homer Township, 14350 W. 151st St., Homer Glen
  • Joliet Park District, 3000 W. Jefferson St., Joliet
  • Lockport Township Community Room, 1463 S. Farrell Rd., Lockport
  • Naperville Public Library 95th Street, 3015 Cedar Glade Rd., Naperville
  • Prairie Activity & Rec. Center, 24550 Renwick Rd., Plainfield
  • Spanish Community Center, 310 Franklin St., Joliet
  • Troy Township, 25448 W. Seil Rd., Shorewood
  • Village of Channahon, 2455 S. Navajo Dr., Channahon
  • Village of Elwood, 401 E. Mississippi Ave., Elwood
  • Village of Frankfort, 432 W. Nebraska St., Frankfort
  • Village of Manhattan, 260 Market Pl., Manhattan
  • Village of Mokena, 11004 Carpenter St., Mokena
  • Village of Monee, 5130 W. Court St., Monee
  • Village of New Lenox, 1 Veterans Pkwy., New Lenox
  • Village of Plainfield, 24401 W. Lockport St., Plainfield
  • Village of Romeoville, 1050 W. Romeo Rd., Romeoville
  • Washington Township, 30200 Town Center Rd., Beecher

Check the Will County Clerk's Office website for more specific early voting site information.

Voters can also request a mail-in ballot.

DeKalb County

Early voting in DeKalb County begins on Thursday, Feb. 5, at the county's Legislative Center in the Gathertorium, located at 200 N. Main St. in Sycamore. 

Initial hours will be Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and then expand to weekend hours starting on March 7.

Early voting expands to more locations on March 2:

  • Kingston Friendship Center, 120 Main St., Kingston
  • NIU-Holmes Student Center Gallery Lounge, 340 Carroll Ave., DeKalb
  • DeKalb Township Building, 2323 S. 4th St., DeKalb
  • Sandwich Library, 925 S. Main St., Sandwich

Visit the DeKalb County Clerk's Office for more on early voting locations and hours..

Grundy County

Early voting in Grundy County begins Thursday, Feb. 5 at the county courthouse lobby, located at 111 E. Washington Street, Room 12 in Morris from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays.

Expanded hours being on Feb. 24, including voting on Saturdays.

For more information on early voting times and locations, visit the Grundy County Clerk's Office website.

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