Voters Come Out To Cast Ballots In Illinois

Slow streams of Illinoisans made their way to the polls for local elections.

Tuesday's turnout is expected to be low as Illinois voters elect mayors, highway commissioners and school board members. Cook County Clerk David Orr said it was a bit slow in the Chicago suburbs. But he said it's busier in certain cities where there are highly contested races, like Country Club Hills, Dixmoor or Ford Heights. Orr says equipment is working well. He said he didn't see any problems.

About 100 voters cast ballots at one Rockford polling place by 8:30 a.m. In Peoria, voting booths at First Baptist Church saw one voter every five minutes by 8:15 a.m.

The race to replace former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. has received the most attention in the Chicago area.

In east-central Illinois, Urbana Mayor Laurel Prussing is running for a third term against Republican challenger Rex Bradfield, who ran against her four years ago. 

There are also mayoral or village president races in Charleston, Hoopeston, Rantoul, Mahomet, Monticello and other communities.

Several communities are voting on propositions to host electric aggregation programs, intended to lower electric bills for residents and businesses. Those communities include Fisher, Tolono, Sidney and Philo in Champaign County … Danville, Hoopeston and Georgetown in Vermilion County, Monticello in Piatt County, and Clinton and the unincorporated part of the county in DeWitt County.

In Douglas County, voters are being asked to pass a 1% sales tax to help local school districts finance new builidng constuction.

In Piatt County, an advisory referendum asks if "trained certified and licensed law-abiding adult citizens" should be able to carry firewarms. A second advisory referendum asks if Piatt County should reduce the 20-acre minimum, required for home-building on agricultural land.

And voters in the Atwood Hammond and Arthur school districts are voting on a proposed merger. The question must be approved by majorities in both school districts, for the merger to go through.

Final results from Tuesday's voting will be posted on will.illinois.edu