Election Day, November 6th, is fast approaching! The focus these past few weeks in the news and around town has been on the large races – Governor/Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and Secretary of State. However, there is a lot more on the ballot this year including referendums from the Village of Oak Park and Cook County.
Oak Park has two referendums on the ballot that have been hot topics around town. The first is a question presented by the Oak Park Township about firearm storage: “Shall all firearms be required by law to be stored in a safe and secure manner that prevents access by unauthorized persons, when such firearms are not under the direct personal control of the owner?”.
The second question was proposed by the Village of Oak Park and asks: “Shall the merger and consolidation of Oak Park taxing bodies be considered, including, but not limited to, the Village of Oak Park, Oak Park Township, the Oak Park Public Library and the Park District of Oak Park, to determine if there would be efficiencies, the elimination of redundancies and/or a property tax reduction for the residents of Oak Park?”. Both of these referendums are non-binding, which means that they are used to gather data on the opinions of the community before any action is taken.
Are you ready to vote? Here is a checklist to make sure you are ready to vote on November 6th.
Register. The deadline to register by mail has passed. However, you still have two options: Online and in person on Election Day. If you have an Illinois Driver’s license or state ID, you can register online here. On November 6th, you can register to vote in person. However, you must do this at your home precinct only. If you plan to register this way, make sure to bring two forms of identification with you.
Review the ballot ahead of time. Oak Parkers can view the upcoming ballot here. If you are not located in Oak Park, you can view a sample ballot by going to this link and entering your address. Remember that you can bring your sample ballot in with you to vote. Fill it out ahead of time as a guide for your official ballot.
Vote. Early voting is now available at the Oak Park Village Hall, located at 123 Madison Street. Available hours can be viewed here. You can also vote by mail if you will be unable to make it to your polling place. Apply online here to receive a mail ballot. You must be able to provide a driver’s license or state ID number, the last four digits of your Social Security Number, your address, and an email address in order to apply. Remember to get your mail ballot postmarked by November 6th to be counted. If you will be voting on Election Day, you can look up your designated polling place here. Locations are subject to change, so be sure to confirm you are heading to the right place.
Proudly wear your “I Voted!” sticker for the rest of the day.
See you at the polls!
