Number of people voting early in-person or by mail-in ballot increases in Will, DuPage counties
The number of people choosing to vote early either in person or by mail continues to grow in Will and DuPage counties.
DuPage set a record 19% voter turnout in a consolidated election, the highest level in at least 12 years, said Adam Johnson, chief deputy of the County Clerk’s Office.
About 22,000 people voted early in person and another 33,000 voted through mail-in ballots, Johnson said.
In 2021, DuPage had received 12,483 mail-in ballots and 20,135 early voters as of Election Day.
In-person early voting numbers at the Naperville 95th Street Library in Will County were 26% higher this year than in the consolidated election of 2021, perhaps because of the city’s two big races in which a new mayor and at least three new council members will be elected
In 2021, 2,071 voters cast their ballots at the south side library prior to Election Day compared to 2,618 this year during early voting.
All told, there are 454,714 registered voters in Will County and nearly 51,500 had cast a ballot by Tuesday afternoon.
Charles Pelkie, chief of staff for Will County Clerk Lauren Staley Ferry, said 39,079 voters requested mail-in ballots this year and 16,013 had been returned to the clerk’s office as of 2 p.m. Tuesday.
By comparison, 11,820 of the 18,231 requested mail-in ballots had been returned by Election Day.
Of those returned this year, 15,163 mail-in ballots were run through tabulation machines on Sunday with results to be reported after close of polls Tuesday, Pelkie said.
Any mail-in ballots that come in Wednesday or later postmarked on or before Election Day will be tabulated on April 18, the day the election’s results are certified.
As of 2 p.m. Tuesday, 14,027 people in Will had cast ballots prior to Election Day at polling places and another 21,437 voted on Election Day.
In 2021, 13,579 had voted at early voting sites.