The Municipals

Statewide Municipal Elections

With all the heart-pounding excitement surrounding Chicago’s Mayoral run-off, it’s easy to forget that many municipalities are holding elections next week. In fact, there are 101 other counties across this great state and every single one of ’em has municipal elections coming up. And conveniently enough, they are all happening on the same date: April 2nd.

FUN FACT: Illinois has the most local units of government of any state in the entire country. We actually talk about this in Episode 3 of our podcast IL Informed… An episode about corruption. *hint* we need to be voting in these municipal elections, y’all *hint*.

Since we’re pretty big on the idea that states matter, we want to give you a quick guide to how statewide municipal elections work and what to look out for. Even if it’s not your district, you might want to know what kinds of offices and issues your neighbors are voting on and it’s a small step toward healing our rural-urban divide in our state.

If you just want a quick fix, check out BallotReady for the deets on your local election.

When and where are municipal elections?

Illinois has two types of regular statewide elections: general elections and municipal elections. The general elections are for county, state and federal offices, whereas municipal elections are for local (think city or township) offices.

Once upon a time, local governments could hold municipal elections wherever and whenever they felt like it. But in 1982, in an effort to save money and increase voter turnout, statewide laws were passed mandating that municipal elections happen on the same date and time across the state.

Ever since, you can set your watch to ’em: municipal elections are held in odd-numbered years (like 2019) and on the first Tuesday in April (unless they happen to fall on the Jewish holiday, Passover, in which case the election rolls over to the second Tuesday in April).

What are municipal elections for?

The offices on the ballot for municipal elections tend to vary across local municipalities. We’re talking things like library trustees, city councilhumans, park district commissioners, school board members, your friendly neighborhood dog-catcher, and other local functions that might not be as glamorous as Cook County Clerk but that make the wheels of local government turn.

Over in McHenry County, for instance, villages will be voting on a trustee (the village equivalent of a mayor), park districts will be voting on commissioners and there will be all kinds of local referenda on the ballot, like whether the Huntley Area Public Library District should issue bonds to remodel the library.

In Hinsdale Township, a battle royale is brewing over funding for renovations to two local high schools. The Hinsdale school board, looking to save money, recently exercised the nuclear option: they cut nine sports, including football. Now angry parents will go to the polls to decide whether to pay higher property taxes or get used to a world without high school football.

Meanwhile, over in Batavia, their nonpartisan elections are becoming not so nonpartisan. After a history of Progressives endorsing candidates, Republicans have jumped in on the endorsement game.

At the end of the day, all politics is local.

How to Vote in Municipal Elections

1. Make sure you’re registered to vote. If you registered previously, you only need to re-register if you changed your name or moved.

2. If you’re not registered, no worries! You can register when you go to vote. Check out our article to learn how.

3. Make a plan to vote! Early voting is already open.

4. Cast your vote!

5. Tell your friends!