Polls closed Tuesday after weeks of campaign advertisements and outreach efforts ahead of Election Day.
Presidential elections typically drive higher turnout than midterms. However, a combination of factors from the economy to the actions of federal immigration agents have potential to drive more people to the polls in 2026.
Voters made choices about a number of important races and referenda including Chicago’s first fully elected school board.
Almost 500,000 total ballots were cast in Chicago, according to Chicago Board of Elections data from 9:40 p.m.
A spokesperson estimated turnout for the election would surpass the previous midterm total from 2022.
The high voter count was accompanied by long waits at many polling locations throughout the day.
The spokesperson reported a shortage of ballots at multiple locations on Election Day. One location was the 4th precinct of the 1st Ward. The spokesperson reported voters were using touch screens, and it was slowing down the process. Some voters were sent to nearby locations that were formerly early voting centers.
During the day, individual voters reported delays connected to the lack of ballots at precincts in other wards as well, including the 25th, 32nd and 33rd. The Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights shared a list of 11 voting locations across the city where long lines were reported, some lasting multiple hours.
The board was investigating the cause of the ballot shortages, noting the delays appeared to be happening in some precincts that were split between different districts.
Voter turnout in suburban Cook County appeared strong, with more than 275,000 residents casting ballots through early voting as of Monday afternoon, according to the Cook County clerk’s office. Nearly 128,000 vote-by-mail ballots had also been returned.
The Cook County clerk reported more than 580,000 Election Day votes had been received by 9 p.m., about 33.2% of registered voters.
The presence of federal election monitors from the U.S. Department of Justice were also confirmed by the Chicago spokesperson, who said the monitors work in pairs. The Board of Elections had not received any reports about the monitors, according to the spokesperson.
Though previously involved in elections, monitors are one of many ways the Trump administration has ramped up efforts at increasing control of state and local elections.
Figures from the board show that as of Monday night, 211,657 early voting ballots had been cast at the ward and downtown early voting locations across Chicago. There were 109,215 vote-by-mail ballots cast, about 45% of the total, as of Monday. The board reported more than 1,500,000 registered voters in Chicago.
Almost 60 million across the country cast an early ballot or voted by mail before the polls opened today, according to records compiled by the University of Florida Elections Lab. In Illinois, the state board of elections reported more than 1,500,000 early ballots.
Chicago and Cook County election authorities will continue updating turnout numbers as later arriving mail-in ballots are counted.
Mail ballots will be counted if they are postmarked by Election Day or returned to an official ballot drop box by the close of voting.
Patty Wetli contributed reporting.
