10 ILCS 5/ Election Code.

(10 ILCS 5/7-66)

Sec. 7-66. Precinct tabulation optical scan technology voting equipment.

If the election authority has adopted the use of Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan Technology voting equipment pursuant to Article 24B of this Code, and the provisions of the Article are in conflict with the provisions of this Article 7, the provisions of Article 24B shall govern the procedures followed by the election authority, its judges of elections, and all employees and agents. In following the provisions of Article 24B, the election authority is authorized to develop and implement procedures to fully utilize Precinct Tabulation Optical Scan Technology voting equipment authorized by the State Board of Elections as long as the procedure is not in conflict with either Article 24B or the administrative rules of the State Board of Elections.

(Source: P.A. 89-394, eff. 1-1-97.)

(10 ILCS 5/7-67)

Sec. 7-67. Nominations; regional superintendents of schools.

(a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, this Section shall apply only to the making of nominations for established party candidates for regional superintendent of schools in the 2014 general primary election.

(b) A candidate's petition for nomination must contain at least 200 signatures or the number of signatures equal to 0.5% of the primary electors of his or her party in the territory comprising the county or counties, whichever is less. For purposes of this subsection, the number of primary electors shall be determined by taking the total votes cast in the applicable district for the candidate for that political party who received the highest number of votes, statewide, at the last general election in the State at which electors for President of the United States were elected.

(c) Petitions for nomination for regional superintendent of schools shall be filed no earlier than December 16, 2013, and no later than December 23, 2013.

(d) Petitions for single-county districts shall be filed with the county election authority. Petitions for multi-county districts shall be filed with the State Board of Elections. Signatures and circulator statements on petitions for nomination filed with the State Board of Elections or county election authority during the filing period for nominations shall not be deemed invalid for the sole reason that the petitions were circulated between 90 and 111 days before the last day for filing petitions.

(e) In the case of a conflict between the provisions of this Section and any other provision of this Code, the provisions of this Section shall control.

(Source: P.A. 98-594, eff. 11-15-13.)

(10 ILCS 5/7-68)

Sec. 7-68. Nominations for special election for Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, or Treasurer.

(a) Whenever a special election for the office of Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, or Treasurer is to be held pursuant to Section 25-5 of this Code, nominations shall be made and any vacancy in nomination shall be filled pursuant to this Section.

(1) If the vacancy in office or failure to qualify for the office occurs before the first date provided in Section 7-12 for filing nomination papers for the primary in the next even-numbered year following the commencement of the term, the nominations for the special election shall be made as otherwise provided in this Article 7. The nomination for the office to be filled by special election shall appear on the regular ballot at the primary election, and shall not require the use of a separate ballot.

(2) If the vacancy in office or failure to qualify occurs on or after the first day provided in Section 7-12 for filing nomination papers for the primary in the next even-numbered year following the commencement of the term, a vacancy in nomination shall be deemed to have occurred and the State central committee of each established political party shall nominate, by resolution, a candidate to fill such vacancy in nomination for the election to such office at such general election.

The resolution to fill the vacancy in nomination shall include the following information:

(A) the names of the original office holder and the office;

(B) the date on which the vacancy in nomination occurred;

(C) the name and address of the nominee selected to fill the vacancy in nomination and the date of selection.

The resolution to fill the vacancy in nomination shall be accompanied by a Statement of Candidacy, as prescribed in Section 7-10, completed by the selected nominee and a receipt indicating that such nominee has filed a statement of economic interests as required by the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act.

(b) Any vacancy in nomination occurring on or after the primary and prior to certification must be filled prior to the date of certification. Any vacancy in nomination occurring after certification but prior to 15 days before the general election shall be filled within 8 days after the event creating the vacancy in nomination.

(c) The provisions of Sections 10-8 through 10-10.1 relating to objections to nomination papers, hearings on objections and judicial review, shall also apply to and govern objections to nomination papers and resolutions for filling vacancies in nomination filed pursuant to this Section.

(d) Unless otherwise specified herein, the nomination and special election provided for in this Section shall be governed by this Code.

(Source: P.A. 98-1170, eff. 1-12-15.)

(10 ILCS 5/7-100)

Sec. 7-100. Definition of a vote.

(a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, for the purpose of this Article, a person casts a valid vote on a punch card ballot when:

(1) A chad on the card has at least one corner detached from the card;

(2) The fibers of paper on at least one edge of the chad are broken in a way that permits unimpeded light to be seen through the card; or

(3) An indentation on the chad from the stylus or other object is present and indicates a clearly ascertainable intent of the voter to vote based on the totality of the circumstances, including but not limited to any pattern or frequency of indentations on other ballot positions from the same ballot card.

(b) Write-in votes shall be counted in a manner consistent with the existing provisions of this Code.

(c) For purposes of this Section, a "chad" is that portion of a ballot card that a voter punches or perforates with a stylus or other designated marking device to manifest his or her vote for a particular ballot position on a ballot card as defined in subsection (a).

(d) Prior to the original counting of any punch card ballots, an election judge may not alter a punch card ballot in any manner, including, but not limited to, the removal or manipulation of chads.

(Source: P.A. 94-645, eff. 8-22-05.)

(10 ILCS 5/Art. 7A heading) ARTICLE 7A. JUDGES' DECLARATION OF INTENT TO SEEK RETENTION IN OFFICE

(10 ILCS 5/7A-1) (from Ch. 46, par. 7A-1)

Sec. 7A-1. Any Supreme, Appellate or Circuit Judge who has been elected to that office and who seeks to be retained in that office under subsection (d) of Section 12 of Article VI of the Constitution shall file a declaration of candidacy to succeed himself in the office of the Secretary of State not less than 6 months before the general election preceding the expiration of his term of office. Within 3 business days thereafter, the Secretary of State shall certify to the State Board of Elections the names of all incumbent judges who were eligible to stand for retention at the next general election but failed to timely file a declaration of candidacy to succeed themselves in office or, having timely filed such a declaration, withdrew it. The State Board of Elections may rely upon the certification from the Secretary of State (a) to determine when vacancies in judicial office exist and (b) to determine the judicial positions for which elections will be held. The Secretary of State, not less than 63 days before the election, shall certify the Judge's candidacy to the proper election officials. The names of Judges seeking retention shall be submitted to the electors, separately and without party designation, on the sole question whether each Judge shall be retained in office for another term. The retention elections shall be conducted at general elections in the appropriate Judicial District, for Supreme and Appellate Judges, and in the circuit for Circuit Judges. The affirmative vote of three-fifths of the electors voting on the question shall elect the Judge to the office for a term commencing on the first Monday in December following his election.

Upon certification of a Judge's candidacy for retention by the Secretary of State, the judicial candidate may file a written request with the Secretary of State for redaction of the judicial candidate's home address information from the candidate's declaration of candidacy for retention. After receipt of the candidate's written request, the Secretary of State shall redact or cause redaction of the judicial candidate's home address from the candidate's declaration of candidacy for retention within 5 business days. For the purposes of this subsection, "home address" has the meaning as defined in Section 1-10 of the Judicial Privacy Act.

(Source: P.A. 96-886, eff. 1-1-11; 97-847, eff. 9-22-12.)

(10 ILCS 5/Art. 8 heading) ARTICLE 8. NOMINATIONS OF MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

(10 ILCS 5/8-1) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-1)

Sec. 8-1. The nomination of all candidates for members of the General Assembly by all political parties as defined in Section 8-2 of this article shall be made in the manner provided in this article 8 and not otherwise.

The name of no person, nominated by a party required hereunder to make nominations of candidates for members of the General Assembly shall be placed upon the official ballot to be voted at the general election as a candidate unless such person shall have been nominated for such office under the provisions of this article 8.

(Source: P.A. 82-750.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-2) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-2)

Sec. 8-2. The term "political party" as used in this article shall mean a political party which, at the next preceding election for governor, polled at least five per cent of the entire vote cast in the State; Provided, that no political organization or group shall be qualified as a political party hereunder, or given a place on a ballot, which organization or group is associated, directly or indirectly, with Communist, Fascist, Nazi or other un-American principles and engages in activities or propaganda designed to teach subservience to the political principles and ideals of foreign nations or the overthrow by violence of the established constitutional form of government of the United States and the State of Illinois.

(Source: Laws 1943, vol. 2, p. 1.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-3) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-3)

Sec. 8-3. The following words and phrases in this article shall, unless the same be inconsistent with the context, be construed as follows:

(1) The terms "legislative office", "legislative officer" or "legislator" shall mean a State Senator or Representative in the General Assembly.

(2) The term "legislative district" shall mean the territorial area from which a State Senator is to be elected.

(3) The term "representative district" shall mean the territorial area from which a Representative in the General Assembly is to be elected.

(Source: P.A. 82-750.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-4) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-4)

Sec. 8-4. The nomination of candidates for legislative offices shall be made at the general primary election.

(Source: P.A. 95-6, eff. 6-20-07.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-5) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-5)

Sec. 8-5. Legislative committees; representative committees. There shall be constituted one legislative committee for each political party in each legislative district and one representative committee for each political party in each representative district. Legislative and representative committees shall be composed as follows:

In legislative or representative districts within or including a portion of any county containing 2,000,000 or more inhabitants, the legislative or representative committee of a political party shall consist of the committeepersons of such party representing each township or ward of such county any portion of which township or ward is included within such legislative or representative district and the chair of each county central committee of such party of any county containing less than 2,000,000 inhabitants any portion of which county is included within such legislative or representative district.

In the remainder of the State, the legislative or representative committee of a political party shall consist of the chair of each county central committee of such party, any portion of which county is included within such legislative or representative district; but if a legislative or representative district comprises only one county, or part of a county, its legislative or representative committee shall consist of the chair of the county central committee and 2 members of the county central committee appointed by the chair of the county central committee.

Within 180 days after the primary of the even-numbered year immediately following the decennial redistricting required by Section 3 of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, the ward committeepersons, township committeepersons or chairmen of county central committees within each of the redistricted legislative and representative districts shall meet and proceed to organize by electing from among their own number a chair and, either from among their own number or otherwise, such other officers as they may deem necessary or expedient. The ward committeepersons, township committeepersons or chairmen of county central committees shall determine the time and place (which shall be in the limits of such district) of such meeting. Immediately upon completion of organization, the chair shall forward to the State Board of Elections the names and addresses of the chair and secretary of the committee. A vacancy shall occur when a member dies, resigns or ceases to reside in the county, township or ward which he represented.

Within 180 days after the primary of each other even-numbered year, each legislative committee and representative committee shall meet and proceed to organize by electing from among its own number a chair, and either from its own number or otherwise, such other officers as each committee may deem necessary or expedient. Immediately upon completion of organization, the chair shall forward to the State Board of Elections, the names and addresses of the chair and secretary of the committee. The outgoing chair of such committee shall notify the members of the time and place (which shall be in the limits of such district) of such meeting. A vacancy shall occur when a member dies, resigns, or ceases to reside in the county, township or ward, which he represented.

If any change is made in the boundaries of any precinct, township or ward, the committeeperson previously elected therefrom shall continue to serve, as if no boundary change had occurred, for the purpose of acting as a member of a legislative or representative committee until his successor is elected or appointed.

(Source: P.A. 102-15, eff. 6-17-21.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-6) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-6)

Sec. 8-6. In legislative or representative districts wholly contained within counties having 2,000,000 or more inhabitants each member of each legislative or representative committee shall in its organization and proceedings be entitled to one vote for each ballot voted in that portion of his township or ward in the legislative or representative district by the primary electors of his party at the last primary at which members of the General Assembly were nominated. If a portion of the legislative or representative district is within a county containing 2,000,000 or more inhabitants then each legislative or representative committee member shall be entitled to vote as follows: (a) in the portion of the district lying within a county of 2,000,000 or more inhabitants, each committeeperson shall be entitled to one vote for each ballot voted in that portion of his township or ward in the legislative or representative district by primary electors of his party at the last primary at which township or ward committeepersons were elected; (b) in the portion of the district lying outside a county of 2,000,000 or more inhabitants, each chair of a county central committee shall be entitled to one vote for each ballot voted in that portion of his county in the legislative or representative district by the primary electors of his party at the last primary at which members of the General Assembly were nominated. In the remainder of the State, each member shall be entitled to cast one vote for each ballot voted in that portion of his county in the legislative or representative district by the primary electors of his party at the last primary at which members of the General Assembly were nominated. However, in counties under 2,000,000 population, if the legislative or representative district comprises only one county, or part of a county, each legislative or representative committee member shall be entitled to cast one vote.

(Source: P.A. 100-1027, eff. 1-1-19.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-7) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-7)

Sec. 8-7. The various political party committees now in existence are hereby recognized and shall exercise the powers and perform the duties herein prescribed until committeepersons are chosen, in accordance with the provisions of this Article.

(Source: P.A. 100-1027, eff. 1-1-19.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-8) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-8)

Sec. 8-8. Form of petition for nomination. The name of no candidate for nomination shall be printed upon the primary ballot unless a petition for nomination shall have been filed in his behalf as provided for in this Section. Each such petition shall include as a part thereof the oath required by Section 7-10.1 of this Code and a statement of candidacy by the candidate filing or in whose behalf the petition is filed. This statement shall set out the address of such candidate and the office for which he is a candidate; shall state that the candidate is a qualified primary voter of the party to which the petition relates, is qualified for the office specified, and has filed a statement of economic interests as required by the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act; shall request that the candidate's name be placed upon the official ballot; and shall be subscribed and sworn by such candidate before some officer authorized to take acknowledgment of deeds in this State and may be in substantially the following form:

State of Illinois)

) ss.

County ..........)

I, ...., being first duly sworn, say that I reside at .... street in the city (or village of) .... in the county of .... State of Illinois; that I am a qualified voter therein and am a qualified primary voter of .... party; that I am a candidate for nomination to the office of .... to be voted upon at the primary election to be held on (insert date); that I am legally qualified to hold such office and that I have filed a statement of economic interests as required by the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act and I hereby request that my name be printed upon the official primary ballot for nomination for such office. Signed .................... Subscribed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me by ...., who is to me personally known, on (insert date). Signed .... (Official Character) (Seal if officer has one.) The receipt issued by the Secretary of State indicating that the candidate has filed the statement of economic interests required by the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act must be filed with the petitions for nomination as provided in subsection (8) of Section 7-12 of this Code.

Except as otherwise provided in this Code, all petitions for nomination for the office of State Senator shall be signed by at least 1,000 but not more than 3,000 of the qualified primary electors of the candidate's party in his legislative district.

Except as otherwise provided in this Code, all petitions for nomination for the office of Representative in the General Assembly shall be signed by at least 500 but not more than 1,500 of the qualified primary electors of the candidate's party in his or her representative district.

Opposite the signature of each qualified primary elector who signs a petition for nomination for the office of State Representative or State Senator such elector's residence address shall be written or printed. The residence address required to be written or printed opposite each qualified primary elector's name shall include the street address or rural route number of the signer, as the case may be, as well as the signer's county and city, village, or town.

For the purposes of this Section, the number of primary electors shall be determined by taking the total vote cast, in the applicable district, for the candidate for such political party who received the highest number of votes, state-wide, at the last general election in the State at which electors for President of the United States were elected.

A "qualified primary elector" of a party may not sign petitions for or be a candidate in the primary of more than one party.

In the affidavit at the bottom of each sheet, the petition circulator, who shall be a person 18 years of age or older who is a citizen of the United States, shall state his or her street address or rural route number, as the case may be, as well as his or her county, city, village or town, and state; and shall certify that the signatures on that sheet of the petition were signed in his or her presence; and shall certify that the signatures are genuine; and shall certify that, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, the persons so signing were at the time of signing the petition qualified primary voters for which the nomination is sought.

In the affidavit at the bottom of each petition sheet, the petition circulator shall (1) indicate the dates on which he or she circulated that sheet, or (2) indicate the first and last dates on which the sheet was circulated, or (3) for elections where the petition circulation period is 90 days, certify that none of the signatures on the sheet were signed more than 90 days preceding the last day for the filing of the petition, or (4) for the 2022 general primary election only, certify that the signatures on the sheet were signed during the period of January 13, 2022 through March 14, 2022 or certify that the signatures on the sheet were signed during the period of January 13, 2022 through the date on which this statement was sworn or affirmed to. No petition sheet shall be circulated more than 90 days preceding the last day provided in Section 8-9 for the filing of such petition.

All petition sheets which are filed with the State Board of Elections shall be the original sheets which have been signed by the voters and by the circulator, and not photocopies or duplicates of such sheets.

The person circulating the petition, or the candidate on whose behalf the petition is circulated, may strike any signature from the petition, provided that:

(1) the person striking the signature shall initial the petition at the place where the signature is struck; and

(2) the person striking the signature shall sign a certification listing the page number and line number of each signature struck from the petition. Such certification shall be filed as a part of the petition.

(Source: P.A. 102-15, eff. 6-17-21; 102-692, eff. 1-7-22; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-8.1) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-8.1)

Sec. 8-8.1. In the designation of the name of a candidate on a petition for nomination, the candidate's given name or names, initial or initials, a nickname by which the candidate is commonly known, or a combination thereof, may be used in addition to the candidate's surname. If a candidate has changed his or her name, whether by a statutory or common law procedure in Illinois or any other jurisdiction, within 3 years before the last day for filing the petition for that office, then (i) the candidate's name on the petition must be followed by "formerly known as (list all prior names during the 3-year period) until name changed on (list date of each such name change)" and (ii) the petition must be accompanied by the candidate's affidavit stating the candidate's previous names during the period specified in (i) and the date or dates each of those names was changed; failure to meet these requirements shall be grounds for denying certification of the candidate's name for the ballot or removing the candidate's name from the ballot, as appropriate, but these requirements do not apply to name changes resulting from adoption to assume an adoptive parent's or parents' surname, marriage or civil union to assume a spouse's surname, or dissolution of marriage or civil union or declaration of invalidity of marriage or civil union to assume a former surname or a name change that conforms the candidate's name to his or her gender identity. No other designation such as a political slogan, title, or degree, or nickname suggesting or implying possession of a title, degree or professional status, or similar information may be used in connection with the candidate's surname.

(Source: P.A. 102-15, eff. 6-17-21.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-9) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-9)

Sec. 8-9. All petitions for nomination shall be filed by mail or in person as follows:

(1) Where the nomination is made for a legislative office, such petition for nomination shall be filed in the principal office of the State Board of Elections not more than 113 and not less than 106 days prior to the date of the primary.

(2) The State Board of Elections shall, upon receipt of each petition, endorse thereon the day and hour on which it was filed. Petitions filed by mail and received after midnight on the first day for filing and in the first mail delivery or pickup of that day, shall be deemed as filed as of 8:00 a.m. of that day or as of the normal opening hour of such day as the case may be, and all petitions received thereafter shall be deemed as filed in the order of actual receipt. However, 2 or more petitions filed within the last hour of the filing deadline shall be deemed to have been filed simultaneously. Where 2 or more petitions are received simultaneously, the State Board of Elections shall break ties and determine the order of filing, by means of a lottery as provided in Section 7-12 of this Code.

(3) Any person for whom a petition for nomination has been filed, may cause his name to be withdrawn by a request in writing, signed by him, duly acknowledged before an officer qualified to take acknowledgments of deeds, and filed in the principal or permanent branch office of the State Board of Elections not later than the date of certification of candidates for the general primary ballot, and no names so withdrawn shall be certified by the State Board of Elections to the county clerk, or printed on the primary ballot. If petitions for nomination have been filed for the same person with respect to more than one political party, his name shall not be certified nor printed on the primary ballot of any party. If petitions for nomination have been filed for the same person for 2 or more offices which are incompatible so that the same person could not serve in more than one of such offices if elected, that person must withdraw as a candidate for all but one of such offices within the 5 business days following the last day for petition filing. If he fails to withdraw as a candidate for all but one of such offices within such time, his name shall not be certified, nor printed on the primary ballot, for any office. For the purpose of the foregoing provisions, an office in a political party is not incompatible with any other office.

(4) If multiple sets of nomination papers are filed for a candidate to the same office, the State Board of Elections shall within 2 business days notify the candidate of his or her multiple petition filings and that the candidate has 3 business days after receipt of the notice to notify the State Board of Elections that he or she may cancel prior sets of petitions. If the candidate notifies the State Board of Elections the last set of petitions filed shall be the only petitions to be considered valid by the State Board of Elections. If the candidate fails to notify the State Board then only the first set of petitions filed shall be valid and all subsequent petitions shall be void.

(Source: P.A. 98-115, eff. 7-29-13.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-9.1) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-9.1)

Sec. 8-9.1. The provisions of Sections 10-8 through 10-10.1 relating to objections to certificates of nomination and nomination papers, hearings on objections, and judicial review, shall also apply to and govern objections to petitions for nomination filed under this Article.

(Source: Laws 1967, p. 597.)

(10 ILCS 5/8-10) (from Ch. 46, par. 8-10)

Sec. 8-10. Except as otherwise provided in this Code, not less than 68 days prior to the date of the primary, the State Board of Elections shall certify to the county clerk for each county, the names of all candidates for legislative offices, as specified in the petitions for nominations on file in its office, which are to be voted for in such county, stating in such certificates the political affiliation of each candidate for nomination, as specified in the petitions. The State Board of Elections shall, in its certificate to the county clerk, certify to the county clerk the names of the candidates in the order in which the names shall appear upon the primary ballot, the names to appear in the order in which petitions have been filed.

Not less than 62 days prior to the date of the primary, the county clerk shall certify to the board of election commissioners if there be any such board in his county, the names of all candidates so certified to him by the State Board of Elections in the districts wholly or partly within the jurisdiction of said board and in the order in which such names are certified to him.

(Source: P.A. 102-15, eff. 6-17-21.)