WAUKEGAN, Illinois – Lake County Clerk Carla Wyckoff says, “It’s important for every voter to have a good understanding of the voting process and feel confident when casting a ballot.”  To help raise your voter IQ, here are some factoids based on the most common questions asked by Lake County’s voters.

• If you damage your ballot, mark it incorrectly, or change your mind about your ballot choices BEFORE casting your ballot, you may request a replacement ballot after surrendering your mismarked ballot to the election judges. 
  
  
• No ballot may be retrieved once it is placed in the ballot bin. If you have any questions about the correctness of your ballot, ask the election judges BEFORE you cast your ballot and see the ballot bin’s display screen “Thank you for voting. Your ballot has been counted.”
  
  
• Your ballot may be different than your neighbor’s ballot and will list only the candidates and issues for the districts serving your address. 
  
  
• You don’t have to vote every race on your ballot. Illinois law requires that the ballot counter alert you before your ballot is deposited in the ballot bin if you did not vote for the state offices of governor/lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, comptroller, or treasurer. You can cast your ballot without voting for any of these races, and the rest of your filled-in ovals will be counted. Or, you can choose to have your ballot returned so you can mark the races you originally omitted.
  
  
• Every early and Election Day voting site is equipped with ballot marking equipment that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This equipment enables voters with vision or dexterity disabilities to mark and cast their ballot in private and without assistance.
  
  
• Illinois does not have a political party registration system. However, in a primary election, you are required to select one political party ballot to vote. You have the freedom to change your party choice in each primary election. 
  
  
• Illinois election code requires election judges to compare and match the signature on your ballot application when voting by mail, early, or on Election Day to the one on your registration record before you can receive a ballot.
  
  
• Write-in votes will only count for candidates who have previously filed a proper Declaration of Intent to be a Write-In Candidate form with the Clerk's office.
   

Visit LakeCountyClerk.info and click on the “November 2018 Election” icon to find information and links for registration and details about voting by mail, early, or on Election Day. You can also contact our Elections Department at Elections@lakecountyil.gov or 847-377-2410.

After visiting this web page, you will have increased your election knowledge, and you can then say with confidence, “Now, I know!”