There are many options as voting season begins
On Nov. 8, voters in Livingston County and all over the country will be heading to the polls to make their vote count. That will be the last day a voter can cast a ballot for the 2022 General Election.
However, there are many options to casting a vote beyond the traditional method. Voting early is one such option that can be done and this begins on Thursday.
Livingston County Clerk Kristy Masching said that the 2020 General Election was affected by COVID and it created the vote by mail process. Masching said that there approximately 3,500 votes cast by mail in the county, and that there was a nearly equal number of in-person early voters — those who voted at the county clerk's office. Masching said this was the first time that voting by mail took place here.
Masching also noted that nearly half of the votes cast in that election were by mail or early voting.
The big races on the ballot are state-wide. The local races are uncontested on the ballot. The county offices do not have opponents as Masching (clerk), Nikki Meier (treasurer) and Ryan Bohm (sheriff) are the only candidates listed.
There are three General Assembly seats on the ballot with each having a Republican candidate — Dan Caulkins (88th), Dennis Tipsword Jr. (105th) and Thomas Bennett (106th).
The main state office races each have three candidates. The biggest race will be the gubernatorial with incumbent Gov. JB Pritzker (Democrat) facing challenger State Rep. Darren Bailey (Republican). The Libertarian Party is running Scott Schluter.
The Attorney General position has incumbent Kwame Raoul (Democrat) facing challengers Thomas DeVore (Republican) and Daniel Robin (Libertarian).
The Secretary of State winner will be new to the position with Jesse White deciding not to run. There is a local flavor to this race with State Rep. Dan Brady of Normal, who represented parts of Livingston County, running as the Republican. Alexi Giannoulias is running for the Democrats and Jon Stewart is the Libertarian candidate.
State Comptroller Susana Mendoza (Democrat) will be challenged by Republican Shannon Teresi and Libertarian Deirdre McCloskey.
State Treasurer Mike Frerichs (Democrat) is looking to hold off challengers Tom Demmer (Republican) and Preston Nelson (Libertarian).
There are three races for the U.S. Congress that county residents will be able to vote on. Sen. Tammy Duckworth is facing Republican Kathy Salvi and Libertarian Bill Redpath in an effort to keep her seat.
In the House of Representatives, The Second Congressional District race pits Thomas Lynch (Republican) against Robin Kelly (Democrat). The 16th District has Rep. Darin LaHood (Republican) facing Lisa Haderlein (Democrat).
Also on the ballot is an Illinois Constitution amendment regarding “right to work.” Voters will be able to answer yes or no.
“I think it will be a higher turnout than the last gubernatorial race was as far as the vote by mail and early voting. We've had lots of people calling to find out when it starts.”
Masching said that the early voting machine in her office will be set up Tuesday and should be ready to go Thursday afternoon. She added that there will be two touchscreens and two optical scans.
The early voting process is rather simple. According to Masching, early voting begins Thursday and will continue through Nov. 7. The days and hours of early voting are Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (the regular office hours of the clerk's office). Early voting is allowed on the three Saturdays, as well.
The hours for voting on the three Saturdays — Oct. 15, 22, 29 — are 9 a.m.-noon.
There are also extended hours for voting on Wednesday, Oct. 19, and Wednesday Oct. 26, as the office will close at 6 p.m.
Masching did point out that there is a Monday holiday — Oct. 10, Columbus Day — when the clerk's office will be closed, so early voting will not be allowed that day.
When it comes to mail-in ballots, they must be postmarked no later than Nov. 8, although they can be received by the clerk up to two weeks after that deadline as long as it has a Nov. 8 postmark.
“If they do the vote-by-mail, we can accept them at any time that two-week period ofter the election as long as they've been postmarked as of election day,” Masching said. “The statute says midnight, but you need to check with your post office. There's a lot of post offices that close early, so if you think you have until midnight, you're going to have to find a post office.”
The United States Post Office at Pontiac will be open from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. on election day.
There is a grace registration and voting period. Beginning Oct. 12 and continuing through Nov. 8, new registrants, and those who have transferred or moved, and did not update their voter registration before Oct. 12 are eligible, according to information provided by Masching.
A prospective voter who registers Oct. 12 or after must be ready to vote at the time of registration, Masching said. They will not be allowed to register without voting upon registration.
In what has become a far too common occurrence, Masching said there is a shortage of judges.
“We're always looking for judges, it seems like,” she said.
Masching noted that classes for judges who are experienced in the voting process will begin classes Wednesday (Sept. 28) and that training for new judges will take place on Saturday, Oct. 8, from 9 a.m. to noon and on Oct. 10 from 9 a.m.-noon. She added that the training time is 2½-3 hours.
Qualifications include must be a citizen of the United States, must be a registered voter, be of good repute and character, be able to speak, read and write the English language, not be a candidate for any office in the election and not be an elected committeeman, and declare your part of preference.
If interested, Masching suggests calling her office at 815-844-2006 and ask for Gail Smythe or Masching.
This article originally appeared on Pontiac Daily Leader: Kristy Masching Livingston County clerk early voting election judge
