Illinois Public Media News

On The 21st: Here’s a quick civics quiz for you. You aren’t registered yet. You don’t speak English. You have a felony conviction. You can’t vote, right? Wrong! We tackle common voting misconceptions. And, voting is for all US citizens but the process can be more challenging if you have a disability, or if you have trouble reading English. What systems are in place to make sure everyone can vote? And, tomorrow is Election Day and many voters are turning out for the very first time, including new citizens. 

The Sangamon county clerk has recruited about 80 high school students to serve as judges and registrars on election day.

A referendum on Tuesday’s ballot in Rantoul would have village board members elected from districts, instead of at-large.

In Danville, an elected mayor runs the city government day to day, and the city council sets laws and policies. That form of government is called mayor-aldermanic or mayor-council government. But a referendum on Tuesday’s ballot would have the city council hire a professional manager to run Danville’s government, and the mayor’s job would become a part-time one.

In one respect, this is a typical midterm election — a race shaped as a referendum on the president and the party in power. But there are so many ways in which this election is anything but typical. We've seen a surge in first-time candidates, especially women and minorities. In the past several midterms, the party in power was relatively complacent compared with the party hoping to be in power. Heading into Election Day, Democrats have an enthusiasm edge, but Republicans have been getting steadily amped up, too.