(10 ILCS 5/22-9.1) (from Ch. 46, par. 22-9.1)

Sec. 22-9.1. Within 5 days after the last day for proclamation of the results of any canvass declaring persons nominated, elected or declared eligible for a runoff election for any office or declaring the adoption or rejection of a question of public policy, the following persons may file a petition for discovery:

(a) any candidate who, in the entire area in which votes may be cast for the office for which he is a candidate, received votes equal in number to at least 95% of the number of votes cast for any successful candidate for the same office; and

(b) any 5 electors of the same area within which votes may be cast on a question of public policy, if the results of the canvass are such that the losing side on the question would have been the prevailing side had it received an additional number of votes equal to 5% of the total number of votes cast on the question.

A petition under this Section shall be filed with the election authority for purposes of discovery only. The petition shall ask that ballots, voting machines, or ballot cards - as the case may be - shall be examined, that any automatic tabulating equipment shall be tested, and that ballots, recorded votes, or ballot cards - as the case may be - shall be counted in specified precincts, not exceeding 25% of the total number of precincts within the jurisdiction of the election authority. Where there are fewer than 4 precincts under the jurisdiction of the election authority and within the area in which votes could be cast in the election in connection with which the petition has been filed, discovery shall be permitted in one of such precincts.

A petition filed under this Section shall be accompanied by the payment of a fee of $50 per precinct specified. All such fees shall be paid by the election authority into the county or city treasury, as the case may be.

After 3 days notice in writing to the successful candidate for the same office or, in the case of a question of public policy, such notice as will reasonably inform interested persons of the time and place of the discovery proceedings, the election authority shall examine the ballots, voting machines, ballot cards, voter affidavits and applications for ballot, test the automatic tabulating equipment, and count the ballots, recorded votes, and ballot cards in the specified election districts or precincts. At the request of any candidate entitled to participate in the discovery proceedings, the election authority shall also make available for examination the ballot applications and voter affidavits for the specified precincts. Each candidate affected by such examination shall have the right to attend the same in person or by his representative. In the case of a question of public policy, the board shall permit an equal number of acknowledged proponents and acknowledged opponents to attend the examination.

On completion of the count of any ballots in each district or precinct, the ballots shall be secured and sealed in the same manner required of judges of election by Sections 7-54 and 17-20 of the Election Code. The handling of the ballots in accord with this Section shall not of itself affect the admissibility in evidence of the ballots in any other proceedings, either legislative or judicial.

The results of the examination and count shall not be certified, used to amend or change the abstracts of the votes previously completed, used to deny the successful candidate for the same office his certificate of nomination or election, nor used to change the previously declared result of the vote on a question of public policy. Such count shall not be binding in an election contest brought about under the provisions of the Election Code, shall not be a prerequisite to bringing such an election contest, shall not prevent the bringing of such an election contest, nor shall it affect the results of the canvass previously proclaimed.

(Source: P.A. 103-467, eff. 8-4-23.)