Primary Election– March 17, 2026

For the March 17 Primary Election, voters will be choosing a political party ballot to vote for candidates to be that party’s nominees for offices that will be on the ballot for the General Midterm Election on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

View video recordings of several local Primary Candidate Forums.

UPDATE–
Ballot Counting & Canvassing Results Dates
• Tuesday, March 31: Deadline for validating and counting provisional ballots and mail ballots.
• Tuesday, April 7: Last day for County Clerk to canvass election results and proclaim results.

Offices on Primary Ballots for Suburban Cook County Voters

U.S.

• One Illinois Senator
• All Illinois Members of the House of Representatives

State

• Governor & Lt. Governor
• Attorney General
• Comptroller
• Secretary of State
• Treasurer
• Some State Senators
• All State Representatives in the General Assembly

Cook County

• President
• All 17 Cook County Board Commissioners
• Assessor
• The Board of Review Commissioners for the 1st and 2nd Districts
• County Clerk
• Sheriff
• Treasurer

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District

• 3 Commissioners for 6-year terms
• 1 Commissioner for 2 years to complete an unexpired term

Judges

Candidates to fill vacancies for the Illinois Supreme Court, Appellate Court, Circuit and Subcircuit Courts. (On the November ballot, voters will also be voting whether to retain judges.)

View the recording of the LWVE Feb 9 event– Panel on Election of Judges. The panel addresses what it is like to be a judicial candidate, the ethical standards that judge candidates must follow, why voting for judges is important, resources for voters, and much more.

Key Dates for March 17, 2026 Primary
Suburban Cook County

For Vote by Mail

• Dec 17 thru March 12– May apply for a mail-in ballot if not already on the Permanent Vote-by-Mail list
• Tues, March 17– Last day to use Drop Boxes or Post Office (must be postmarked) for returning ballots

For Voter Registration only

• Tues, Feb 17–Last day for voter registration with Deputy Voter Registrars
• Sun, March 1– Last day to register online at the Illinois State Board of Elections web site (must have either an Illinois Driver's License or State ID*)

For Voter Registration and Early Voting

• Wed, Feb 18– Early voting and registration begins at Voting Centers (69 W. Washington pedway and Courthouses)

• March 2 through March 16– Early voting and registration expands for Suburban voters at additional suburban sites:
The full early voting schedule for Evanston (EV–Robert Crown, 1801 Main St) and Skokie (SK–Oakton College, 7701 Lincoln Ave):

Mondays–Fridays
March 2–March 6
9:00 am– 5:00 pm

March 9–March 13
9:00 am–7:00 pm (EV)
9:00 am-5:00 pm (SK)

March 16
9:00 am–7:00 pm (EV)
9:00 am-5:00 pm (SK)

Saturdays
March 7
9:00 am–5:00 pm

March 14
9:00 am– 5:00 pm

Sundays
March 8
10:00 am– 4:00 pm

March 15
10:00 am– 4:00 pm

Election Day Voting and Registration

Tuesday, March 17 (6 am to 7 pm)
• at Voting Centers: 69 W. Washington pedway and Courthouses
• at the voter’s local precinct:

NOTE voting location changes–
On election day, the county clerk’s office announced that four voting precincts in Evanston will have new locations:
Precinct 7-4: Evanston Ecology Center, 2024 McCormick Blvd.
Precinct 8-1: James Park shed
Precinct 8-3 and 8-5: Palmhouse, 619 Howard St.

All voting locations, polling information and voter registration status can be found on the County Clerk’s website.

Return to Voting & Elections page.

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Primary Election– March 17, 2026

U.S.

For Vote by Mail

For Voter Registration only