Bill Text: IL SB2267 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Amends the Election Code. Provides that members of the General Assembly and the offices Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, and Treasurer shall be elected by ranked-choice voting. Provides for ranked-choice ballots to be produced. Provides that voters may rank their choice for candidates for those offices and provides for interpretations of certain ballot marks. Provides that tallying ranked-choice votes proceeds in rounds. Provides that in each round, the number of votes for each continuing candidate must be counted, that each continuing ballot counts as one vote for its highest-ranked continuing candidate for that round, and that exhausted ballots are not counted for any continuing candidate. Provides that if only 2 candidates remain, the candidate with the higher vote total wins, and that if more than 2 candidates remain, the last-place candidate is eliminated and another round of tallying is to commence. Provides that rounds continue until a winner is found. Makes conforming changes.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Failed) 2021-01-13 - Session Sine Die [SB2267 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-SB2267-Introduced.html


101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB2267

Introduced 10/28/2019, by Sen. Laura M. Murphy

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
10 ILCS 5/1-3 from Ch. 46, par. 1-3
10 ILCS 5/16-3 from Ch. 46, par. 16-3
10 ILCS 5/16-4.2 new
10 ILCS 5/17-11 from Ch. 46, par. 17-11
10 ILCS 5/17-18 from Ch. 46, par. 17-18
10 ILCS 5/17-18.2 new
10 ILCS 5/18-5 from Ch. 46, par. 18-5
10 ILCS 5/18-9 from Ch. 46, par. 18-9

Amends the Election Code. Provides that members of the General Assembly and the offices Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, and Treasurer shall be elected by ranked-choice voting. Provides for ranked-choice ballots to be produced. Provides that voters may rank their choice for candidates for those offices and provides for interpretations of certain ballot marks. Provides that tallying ranked-choice votes proceeds in rounds. Provides that in each round, the number of votes for each continuing candidate must be counted, that each continuing ballot counts as one vote for its highest-ranked continuing candidate for that round, and that exhausted ballots are not counted for any continuing candidate. Provides that if only 2 candidates remain, the candidate with the higher vote total wins, and that if more than 2 candidates remain, the last-place candidate is eliminated and another round of tallying is to commence. Provides that rounds continue until a winner is found. Makes conforming changes.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

SB2267LRB101 13332 SMS 62174 b
1 AN ACT concerning elections.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing
5Sections 1-3, 16-3, 17-11, 17-18, 18-5, and 18-9 and by adding
6Sections 16-4.2 and 17-18.2 as follows:
7 (10 ILCS 5/1-3) (from Ch. 46, par. 1-3)
8 Sec. 1-3. As used in this Act, unless the context otherwise
9requires:
10 1. "Election" includes the submission of all questions of
11public policy, propositions, and all measures submitted to
12popular vote, and includes primary elections when so indicated
13by the context.
14 2. "Regular election" means the general, general primary,
15consolidated and consolidated primary elections regularly
16scheduled in Article 2A. The even numbered year municipal
17primary established in Article 2A is a regular election only
18with respect to those municipalities in which a primary is
19required to be held on such date.
20 3. "Special election" means an election not regularly
21recurring at fixed intervals, irrespective of whether it is
22held at the same time and place and by the same election
23officers as a regular election.

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1 4. "General election" means the biennial election at which
2members of the General Assembly are elected. "General primary
3election", "consolidated election" and "consolidated primary
4election" mean the respective elections or the election dates
5designated and established in Article 2A of this Code.
6 5. "Municipal election" means an election or primary,
7either regular or special, in cities, villages, and
8incorporated towns; and "municipality" means any such city,
9village or incorporated town.
10 6. "Political or governmental subdivision" means any unit
11of local government, or school district in which elections are
12or may be held. "Political or governmental subdivision" also
13includes, for election purposes, Regional Boards of School
14Trustees, and Township Boards of School Trustees.
15 7. The word "township" and the word "town" shall apply
16interchangeably to the type of governmental organization
17established in accordance with the provisions of the Township
18Code. The term "incorporated town" shall mean a municipality
19referred to as an incorporated town in the Illinois Municipal
20Code, as now or hereafter amended.
21 8. "Election authority" means a county clerk or a Board of
22Election Commissioners.
23 9. "Election Jurisdiction" means (a) an entire county, in
24the case of a county in which no city board of election
25commissioners is located or which is under the jurisdiction of
26a county board of election commissioners; (b) the territorial

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1jurisdiction of a city board of election commissioners; and (c)
2the territory in a county outside of the jurisdiction of a city
3board of election commissioners. In each instance election
4jurisdiction shall be determined according to which election
5authority maintains the permanent registration records of
6qualified electors.
7 10. "Local election official" means the clerk or secretary
8of a unit of local government or school district, as the case
9may be, the treasurer of a township board of school trustees,
10and the regional superintendent of schools with respect to the
11various school officer elections and school referenda for which
12the regional superintendent is assigned election duties by The
13School Code, as now or hereafter amended.
14 11. "Judges of election", "primary judges" and similar
15terms, as applied to cases where there are 2 sets of judges,
16when used in connection with duties at an election during the
17hours the polls are open, refer to the team of judges of
18election on duty during such hours; and, when used with
19reference to duties after the closing of the polls, refer to
20the team of tally judges designated to count the vote after the
21closing of the polls and the holdover judges designated
22pursuant to Section 13-6.2 or 14-5.2. In such case, where,
23after the closing of the polls, any act is required to be
24performed by each of the judges of election, it shall be
25performed by each of the tally judges and by each of the
26holdover judges.

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1 12. "Petition" of candidacy as used in Sections 7-10 and
27-10.1 shall consist of a statement of candidacy, candidate's
3statement containing oath, and sheets containing signatures of
4qualified primary electors bound together.
5 13. "Election district" and "precinct", when used with
6reference to a 30-day residence requirement, means the smallest
7constituent territory in which electors vote as a unit at the
8same polling place in any election governed by this Act.
9 14. "District" means any area which votes as a unit for the
10election of any officer, other than the State or a unit of
11local government or school district, and includes, but is not
12limited to, legislative, congressional and judicial districts,
13judicial circuits, county board districts, municipal and
14sanitary district wards, school board districts, and
15precincts.
16 15. "Question of public policy" or "public question" means
17any question, proposition or measure submitted to the voters at
18an election dealing with subject matter other than the
19nomination or election of candidates and shall include, but is
20not limited to, any bond or tax referendum, and questions
21relating to the Constitution.
22 16. "Ordinance providing the form of government of a
23municipality or county pursuant to Article VII of the
24Constitution" includes ordinances, resolutions and petitions
25adopted by referendum which provide for the form of government,
26the officers or the manner of selection or terms of office of

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1officers of such municipality or county, pursuant to the
2provisions of Sections 4, 6 or 7 of Article VII of the
3Constitution.
4 17. "List" as used in Sections 4-11, 4-22, 5-14, 5-29,
56-60, and 6-66 shall include a computer tape or computer disc
6or other electronic data processing information containing
7voter information.
8 18. "Accessible" means accessible to persons with
9disabilities and elderly individuals for the purpose of voting
10or registration, as determined by rule of the State Board of
11Elections.
12 19. "Elderly" means 65 years of age or older.
13 20. "Person with a disability" means a person having a
14temporary or permanent physical disability.
15 21. "Leading political party" means one of the two
16political parties whose candidates for governor at the most
17recent three gubernatorial elections received either the
18highest or second highest average number of votes. The
19political party whose candidates for governor received the
20highest average number of votes shall be known as the first
21leading political party and the political party whose
22candidates for governor received the second highest average
23number of votes shall be known as the second leading political
24party.
25 22. "Business day" means any day in which the office of an
26election authority, local election official or the State Board

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1of Elections is open to the public for a minimum of 7 hours.
2 23. "Homeless individual" means any person who has a
3nontraditional residence, including, but not limited to, a
4shelter, day shelter, park bench, street corner, or space under
5a bridge.
6 24. "Signature" means a name signed in ink or in digitized
7form. This definition does not apply to a nominating or
8candidate petition or a referendum petition.
9 25. "Intelligent mail barcode tracking system" means a
10printed trackable barcode attached to the return business reply
11envelope for mail-in ballots under Article 19 or Article 20
12that allows an election authority to determine the date the
13envelope was mailed in absence of a postmark.
14 26. "Office elected by ranked-choice voting" means any
15member of the General Assembly, as well as the offices of
16Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of
17State, Comptroller, and Treasurer. These offices shall only be
18elected by ranked-choice voting during a general or special
19election, and not during a primary, consolidated primary, or
20similar election.
21(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-522, eff. 6-30-16.)
22 (10 ILCS 5/16-3) (from Ch. 46, par. 16-3)
23 Sec. 16-3. (a) Except as provided in Section 16-4.2 of this
24Code, the The names of all candidates to be voted for in each
25election district or precinct shall be printed on one ballot,

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1except as is provided in Sections 16-6.1 and 21-1.01 of this
2Act and except as otherwise provided in this Act with respect
3to the odd year regular elections and the emergency referenda;
4all nominations of any political party being placed under the
5party appellation or title of such party as designated in the
6certificates of nomination or petitions. The names of all
7independent candidates shall be printed upon the ballot in a
8column or columns under the heading "independent" arranged
9under the names or titles of the respective offices for which
10such independent candidates shall have been nominated and so
11far as practicable, the name or names of any independent
12candidate or candidates for any office shall be printed upon
13the ballot opposite the name or names of any candidate or
14candidates for the same office contained in any party column or
15columns upon said ballot. The ballot shall contain no other
16names, except that in cases of electors for President and
17Vice-President of the United States, the names of the
18candidates for President and Vice-President may be added to the
19party designation and words calculated to aid the voter in his
20choice of candidates may be added, such as "Vote for one,"
21"Vote for not more than three." If no candidate or candidates
22file for an office and if no person or persons file a
23declaration as a write-in candidate for that office, then below
24the title of that office the election authority instead shall
25print "No Candidate". When an electronic voting system is used
26which utilizes a ballot label booklet, the candidates and

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1questions shall appear on the pages of such booklet in the
2order provided by this Code; and, in any case where candidates
3for an office appear on a page which does not contain the name
4of any candidate for another office, and where less than 50% of
5the page is utilized, the name of no candidate shall be printed
6on the lowest 25% of such page. On the back or outside of the
7ballot, so as to appear when folded, shall be printed the words
8"Official Ballot", followed by the designation of the polling
9place for which the ballot is prepared, the date of the
10election and a facsimile of the signature of the election
11authority who has caused the ballots to be printed. The ballots
12shall be of plain white paper, through which the printing or
13writing cannot be read. However, ballots for use at the
14nonpartisan and consolidated elections may be printed on
15different color paper, except blue paper, whenever necessary or
16desirable to facilitate distinguishing between ballots for
17different political subdivisions. In the case of nonpartisan
18elections for officers of a political subdivision, unless the
19statute or an ordinance adopted pursuant to Article VII of the
20Constitution providing the form of government therefor
21requires otherwise, the column listing such nonpartisan
22candidates shall be printed with no appellation or circle at
23its head. The party appellation or title, or the word
24"independent" at the head of any column provided for
25independent candidates, shall be printed in letters not less
26than one-fourth of an inch in height and a circle one-half inch

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1in diameter shall be printed at the beginning of the line in
2which such appellation or title is printed, provided, however,
3that no such circle shall be printed at the head of any column
4or columns provided for such independent candidates. The names
5of candidates shall be printed in letters not less than
6one-eighth nor more than one-fourth of an inch in height, and
7at the beginning of each line in which a name of a candidate is
8printed a square shall be printed, the sides of which shall be
9not less than one-fourth of an inch in length. However, the
10names of the candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor on
11the same ticket shall be printed within a bracket and a single
12square shall be printed in front of the bracket. The list of
13candidates of the several parties and any such list of
14independent candidates shall be placed in separate columns on
15the ballot in such order as the election authorities charged
16with the printing of the ballots shall decide; provided, that
17the names of the candidates of the several political parties,
18certified by the State Board of Elections to the several county
19clerks shall be printed by the county clerk of the proper
20county on the official ballot in the order certified by the
21State Board of Elections. Any county clerk refusing, neglecting
22or failing to print on the official ballot the names of
23candidates of the several political parties in the order
24certified by the State Board of Elections, and any county clerk
25who prints or causes to be printed upon the official ballot the
26name of a candidate, for an office to be filled by the Electors

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1of the entire State, whose name has not been duly certified to
2him upon a certificate signed by the State Board of Elections
3shall be guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.
4 (b) When an electronic voting system is used which utilizes
5a ballot card, on the inside flap of each ballot card envelope
6there shall be printed a form for write-in voting which shall
7be substantially as follows:
8
WRITE-IN VOTES
9 (See card of instructions for specific information.
10Duplicate form below by hand for additional write-in votes.)
11 _____________________________
12 Title of Office
13( ) ____________________________
14 Name of Candidate
15 Write-in lines equal to the number of candidates for which
16a voter may vote shall be printed for an office only if one or
17more persons filed declarations of intent to be write-in
18candidates or qualify to file declarations to be write-in
19candidates under Sections 17-16.1 and 18-9.1 when the
20certification of ballot contains the words "OBJECTION
21PENDING".
22 (c) When an electronic voting system is used which uses a
23ballot sheet, the instructions to voters on the ballot sheet
24shall refer the voter to the card of instructions for specific
25information on write-in voting. Below each office appearing on
26such ballot sheet there shall be a provision for the casting of

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1a write-in vote. Write-in lines equal to the number of
2candidates for which a voter may vote shall be printed for an
3office only if one or more persons filed declarations of intent
4to be write-in candidates or qualify to file declarations to be
5write-in candidates under Sections 17-16.1 and 18-9.1 when the
6certification of ballot contains the words "OBJECTION
7PENDING".
8 (d) When such electronic system is used, there shall be
9printed on the back of each ballot card, each ballot card
10envelope, and the first page of the ballot label when a ballot
11label is used, the words "Official Ballot," followed by the
12number of the precinct or other precinct identification, which
13may be stamped, in lieu thereof and, as applicable, the number
14and name of the township, ward or other election district for
15which the ballot card, ballot card envelope, and ballot label
16are prepared, the date of the election and a facsimile of the
17signature of the election authority who has caused the ballots
18to be printed. The back of the ballot card shall also include a
19method of identifying the ballot configuration such as a
20listing of the political subdivisions and districts for which
21votes may be cast on that ballot, or a number code identifying
22the ballot configuration or color coded ballots, except that
23where there is only one ballot configuration in a precinct, the
24precinct identification, and any applicable ward
25identification, shall be sufficient. Ballot card envelopes
26used in punch card systems shall be of paper through which no

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1writing or punches may be discerned and shall be of sufficient
2length to enclose all voting positions. However, the election
3authority may provide ballot card envelopes on which no
4precinct number or township, ward or other election district
5designation, or election date are preprinted, if space and a
6preprinted form are provided below the space provided for the
7names of write-in candidates where such information may be
8entered by the judges of election. Whenever an election
9authority utilizes ballot card envelopes on which the election
10date and precinct is not preprinted, a judge of election shall
11mark such information for the particular precinct and election
12on the envelope in ink before tallying and counting any
13write-in vote written thereon. If some method of insuring
14ballot secrecy other than an envelope is used, such information
15must be provided on the ballot itself.
16 (e) In the designation of the name of a candidate on the
17ballot, the candidate's given name or names, initial or
18initials, a nickname by which the candidate is commonly known,
19or a combination thereof, may be used in addition to the
20candidate's surname. If a candidate has changed his or her
21name, whether by a statutory or common law procedure in
22Illinois or any other jurisdiction, within 3 years before the
23last day for filing the petition for nomination, nomination
24papers, or certificate of nomination for that office, whichever
25is applicable, then (i) the candidate's name on the ballot must
26be followed by "formerly known as (list all prior names during

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1the 3-year period) until name changed on (list date of each
2such name change)" and (ii) the petition, papers, or
3certificate must be accompanied by the candidate's affidavit
4stating the candidate's previous names during the period
5specified in (i) and the date or dates each of those names was
6changed; failure to meet these requirements shall be grounds
7for denying certification of the candidate's name for the
8ballot or removing the candidate's name from the ballot, as
9appropriate, but these requirements do not apply to name
10changes resulting from adoption to assume an adoptive parent's
11or parents' surname, marriage to assume a spouse's surname, or
12dissolution of marriage or declaration of invalidity of
13marriage to assume a former surname. No other designation such
14as a political slogan, title, or degree or nickname suggesting
15or implying possession of a title, degree or professional
16status, or similar information may be used in connection with
17the candidate's surname. For purposes of this Section, a
18"political slogan" is defined as any word or words expressing
19or connoting a position, opinion, or belief that the candidate
20may espouse, including but not limited to, any word or words
21conveying any meaning other than that of the personal identity
22of the candidate. A candidate may not use a political slogan as
23part of his or her name on the ballot, notwithstanding that the
24political slogan may be part of the candidate's name.
25 (f) The State Board of Elections, a local election
26official, or an election authority shall remove any candidate's

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1name designation from a ballot that is inconsistent with
2subsection (e) of this Section. In addition, the State Board of
3Elections, a local election official, or an election authority
4shall not certify to any election authority any candidate name
5designation that is inconsistent with subsection (e) of this
6Section.
7 (g) If the State Board of Elections, a local election
8official, or an election authority removes a candidate's name
9designation from a ballot under subsection (f) of this Section,
10then the aggrieved candidate may seek appropriate relief in
11circuit court.
12 Where voting machines or electronic voting systems are
13used, the provisions of this Section may be modified as
14required or authorized by Article 24 or Article 24A, whichever
15is applicable.
16 Nothing in this Section shall prohibit election
17authorities from using or reusing ballot card envelopes which
18were printed before the effective date of this amendatory Act
19of 1985.
20(Source: P.A. 94-1090, eff. 6-1-07; 95-699, eff. 11-9-07;
2195-862, eff. 8-19-08.)
22 (10 ILCS 5/16-4.2 new)
23 Sec. 16-4.2. Ranked-choice ballots.
24 (a) For an election for an office elected by ranked-choice
25voting that has more than 2 choices, the ballot shall be laid

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1out to allow the voter to rank the candidates for an office in
2order of preference. Space shall be provided for a voter to
3include one write-in candidate if he or she desires. The ballot
4shall be as simple and easy to understand as possible. Any
5ballot laid out in such a manner shall be tallied in accordance
6with Section 17-18.2 of this Code.
7 (b) All other requirements of this Article apply with
8regards to ballots for offices elected by ranked-choice voting
9to the extent that they do not contradict the provisions of
10this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly.
11 (10 ILCS 5/17-11) (from Ch. 46, par. 17-11)
12 Sec. 17-11. On receipt of his ballot the voter shall
13forthwith, and without leaving the inclosed space, retire
14alone, or accompanied by children as provided in Section 17-8,
15to one of the voting booths so provided and shall prepare his
16ballot by making in the appropriate margin or place a cross (X)
17opposite the name of the candidate of his choice for each
18office to be filled, or by writing in the name of the candidate
19of his choice in a blank space on said ticket, making a cross
20(X) opposite thereto; and in case of a question submitted to
21the vote of the people, by making in the appropriate margin or
22place a cross (X) against the answer he desires to give. A
23cross (X) in the square in front of the bracket enclosing the
24names of a team of candidates for Governor and Lieutenant
25Governor counts as one vote for each of such candidates. Before

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1leaving the voting booth the voter shall fold his ballot in
2such manner as to conceal the marks thereon. He shall then vote
3forthwith in the manner herein provided, except that the number
4corresponding to the number of the voter on the poll books
5shall not be indorsed on the back of his ballot. He shall mark
6and deliver his ballot without undue delay, and shall quit said
7inclosed space as soon as he has voted; except that immediately
8after voting, the voter shall be instructed whether the voting
9equipment, if used, accepted or rejected the ballot or
10identified the ballot as under-voted for a statewide
11constitutional office. A voter whose ballot is identified as
12under-voted may return to the voting booth and complete the
13voting of that ballot. A voter whose ballot is not accepted by
14the voting equipment may, upon surrendering the ballot, request
15and vote another ballot. The voter's surrendered ballot shall
16be initialed by the election judge and handled as provided in
17the appropriate Article governing that voting equipment.
18 No voter shall be allowed to occupy a voting booth already
19occupied by another, nor remain within said inclosed space more
20than ten minutes, nor to occupy a voting booth more than five
21minutes in case all of said voting booths are in use and other
22voters waiting to occupy the same. No voter not an election
23officer, shall, after having voted, be allowed to re-enter said
24inclosed space during said election. No person shall take or
25remove any ballot from the polling place before the close of
26the poll. No voter shall vote or offer to vote any ballot

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1except such as he has received from the judges of election in
2charge of the ballots. Any voter who shall, by accident or
3mistake, spoil his ballot, may, on returning said spoiled
4ballot, receive another in place thereof only after the word
5"spoiled" has been written in ink diagonally across the entire
6face of the ballot returned by the voter.
7 Where voting machines or electronic voting systems are
8used, the provisions of this section may be modified as
9required or authorized by Article 24, 24A, 24B, or 24C,
10whichever is applicable, except that the requirements of this
11Section that (i) the voter must be notified of the voting
12equipment's acceptance or rejection of the voter's ballot or
13identification of an under-vote for a statewide constitutional
14office and (ii) the voter shall have the opportunity to correct
15an under-vote or surrender the ballot that was not accepted and
16vote another ballot shall not be modified.
17 Where a ranked-choice balloting is used for an office
18elected by ranked-choice balloting, the voter may rank his or
19her preferences for the candidates for that office. A voter
20shall not be required to rank all candidates for that office. A
21cross (X) for only one candidate shall be interpreted as a vote
22of rank 1 for that particular candidate, with no other
23candidate being ranked. Crosses (X) for 2 or more candidates
24shall not count as votes for any candidate, and shall cause the
25ballot to be identified as under-voted, subject to the
26provisions for under-voted ballots under Section 18-5.

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1(Source: P.A. 94-288, eff. 1-1-06; 95-699, eff. 11-9-07.)
2 (10 ILCS 5/17-18) (from Ch. 46, par. 17-18)
3 Sec. 17-18. Immediately upon closing the polls the judges
4shall proceed to canvass the votes polled. They shall first
5count the whole number of ballots in the box. If 2 or more
6ballots are folded together so as to appear to have been cast
7by the same person, all of the ballots so folded together shall
8be marked and returned with the other ballots in the same
9conditions, as near as may be, in which they were found when
10first opened, but shall not be counted. If the remaining
11ballots shall be found to exceed the number of applications for
12ballot, the ballots shall be replaced in the box, and the box
13closed and well shaken and again opened and one of the judges
14shall publicly draw out so many ballots unopened as shall be
15equal to such excess; and the number of the ballots agreeing
16with the poll lists, or being made to agree. Such excess
17ballots shall be marked "Excess-Not Counted" and signed by a
18majority of the judges and shall be placed in the "After 6:00
19p.m. Defective Ballots Envelope". The number of excess ballots
20shall be noted in the remarks section of the Certificate of
21Results. "Excess" ballots shall not be counted in the total of
22"defective" ballots.
23 The judges shall then proceed to count and record the
24votes; and when the judges of election shall open and read the
25ballots, 3 judges, with at least one from each political party

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1from which the precinct judges were chosen, shall carefully and
2correctly mark down upon the three tally sheets the vote each
3candidate has received, in a separate box prepared for that
4purpose, with the name of such candidate at the head of such
5box, and the office designated by the votes such candidate
6shall fill. Whenever a proposition is submitted to the electors
7at the same election, the ballots for or against such
8proposition shall always be canvassed, counted or tallied. The
9votes shall be canvassed in the room or place where the
10election is held, and the judges shall not allow the ballot
11box, or any of the ballots, or the applications for ballot, or
12any of the tally sheets to be removed or carried away from such
13room or place, until the canvass of the vote is completed, and
14the returns carefully enveloped and sealed up as provided by
15law.
16 Where voting machines or electronic voting systems are
17used, the provisions of this section may be modified as
18required or authorized by Article 24 or Article 24A, whichever
19is applicable.
20 Where ranked-choice ballot tallying is used for an office
21elected by ranked-choice voting, the provisions of this Section
22may be modified as required or authorized by Section 16-4.2 or
23Section 17-18.2 of this Code, whichever is applicable.
24(Source: P.A. 83-333.)
25 (10 ILCS 5/17-18.2 new)

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1 Sec. 17-18.2. Ranked-choice ballot tallying.
2 (a) As used in this Section,
3 "Batch elimination" means the simultaneous defeat of
4multiple candidates for whom it is mathematically impossible to
5be elected.
6 "Continuing ballot" means a ballot that is not an exhausted
7ballot.
8 "Continuing candidate" means a candidate who has not been
9defeated.
10 "Exhausted ballot" means a ballot that does not rank any
11continuing candidate, contains an overvote at the highest
12continuing ranking or contains 2 or more sequential skipped
13rankings before its highest continuing ranking.
14 "Highest continuing ranking" means the highest ranking on a
15voter's ballot for a continuing candidate.
16 "Last-place candidate" means the candidate with the fewest
17votes in a round of the ranked-choice voting tallying.
18 "Mathematically impossible to be elected," with respect to
19a candidate, means either:
20 (1) the candidate cannot be elected because the
21 candidate's vote total in a round of the ranked-choice
22 voting tabulation plus all votes that could possibly be
23 transferred to the candidate in future rounds from
24 candidates with fewer votes or an equal number of votes
25 would not be enough to surpass the candidate with the
26 next-higher vote total in the round; or

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1 (2) the candidate has a lower vote total than a
2 candidate described in subparagraph (1) of this
3 definition.
4 "Overvote" means a circumstance in which a voter has ranked
5more than one candidate at the same ranking.
6 "Round" means an instance of the sequence of voting
7tabulation steps established in subsection (b) of this Section.
8 "Skipped ranking" means a circumstance in which a voter has
9left a ranking blank and ranks a candidate at a subsequent
10ranking.
11 (b) Except as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of this
12Section, the following procedures are used to determine the
13winner in an election for an office elected by ranked-choice
14voting. Tallying must proceed in rounds. In each round, the
15number of votes for each continuing candidate must be counted.
16Each continuing ballot counts as one vote for its
17highest-ranked continuing candidate for that round. Exhausted
18ballots are not counted for any continuing candidate. The round
19then ends with one of the following 2 potential outcomes:
20 (1) If there are 2 or fewer continuing candidates, the
21 candidate with the most votes is declared the winner of the
22 election.
23 (2) If there are more than 2 continuing candidates, the
24 last-place candidate is defeated and a new round begins.
25 (c) A tie under this Section between candidates for the
26most votes in the final round or a tie between last-place

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1candidates in any round must be decided by lot, and the
2candidate chosen by lot is defeated. The result of the tie
3resolution must be recorded and reused in the event of a
4recount. Election authorities may resolve prospective ties
5between candidates before the election.
6 (d) Modification of a ranked-choice voting ballot and
7tabulation is permitted in accordance with the following:
8 (1) The number of allowable rankings may be limited to
9 no fewer than 6.
10 (2) Two or more candidates may be defeated
11 simultaneously by batch elimination in any round of
12 tabulation.
13 (e) For all statutory and constitutional provisions in the
14State pertaining to the rights of political parties, the number
15of votes cast for a party's candidate for an office elected by
16ranked-choice voting is the number of votes credited to that
17candidate after the initial counting in the first round
18described in subsection (b).
19 (f) The State Board of Elections may adopt rules to
20implement the provisions of this Section.
21 (10 ILCS 5/18-5) (from Ch. 46, par. 18-5)
22 Sec. 18-5. Any person desiring to vote and whose name is
23found upon the register of voters by the person having charge
24thereof, shall then be questioned by one of the judges as to
25his nativity, his term of residence at present address,

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1precinct, State and United States, his age, whether naturalized
2and if so the date of naturalization papers and court from
3which secured, and he shall be asked to state his residence
4when last previously registered and the date of the election
5for which he then registered. The judges of elections shall
6check each application for ballot against the list of voters
7registered in that precinct to whom grace period, vote by mail,
8and early ballots have been issued for that election, which
9shall be provided by the election authority and which list
10shall be available for inspection by pollwatchers. A voter
11applying to vote in the precinct on election day whose name
12appears on the list as having been issued a grace period, vote
13by mail, or early ballot shall not be permitted to vote in the
14precinct, except that a voter to whom a vote by mail ballot was
15issued may vote in the precinct if the voter submits to the
16election judges that vote by mail ballot for cancellation. If
17the voter is unable to submit the vote by mail ballot, it shall
18be sufficient for the voter to submit to the election judges
19(i) a portion of the vote by mail ballot if the vote by mail
20ballot was torn or mutilated or (ii) an affidavit executed
21before the election judges specifying that (A) the voter never
22received a vote by mail ballot or (B) the voter completed and
23returned a vote by mail ballot and was informed that the
24election authority did not receive that vote by mail ballot. If
25such person so registered shall be challenged as disqualified,
26the party challenging shall assign his reasons therefor, and

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1thereupon one of the judges shall administer to him an oath to
2answer questions, and if he shall take the oath he shall then
3be questioned by the judge or judges touching such cause of
4challenge, and touching any other cause of disqualification.
5And he may also be questioned by the person challenging him in
6regard to his qualifications and identity. But if a majority of
7the judges are of the opinion that he is the person so
8registered and a qualified voter, his vote shall then be
9received accordingly. But if his vote be rejected by such
10judges, such person may afterward produce and deliver an
11affidavit to such judges, subscribed and sworn to by him before
12one of the judges, in which it shall be stated how long he has
13resided in such precinct, and state; that he is a citizen of
14the United States, and is a duly qualified voter in such
15precinct, and that he is the identical person so registered. In
16addition to such an affidavit, the person so challenged shall
17provide to the judges of election proof of residence by
18producing 2 forms of identification showing the person's
19current residence address, provided that such identification
20may include a lease or contract for a residence and not more
21than one piece of mail addressed to the person at his current
22residence address and postmarked not earlier than 30 days prior
23to the date of the election, or the person shall procure a
24witness personally known to the judges of election, and
25resident in the precinct (or district), or who shall be proved
26by some legal voter of such precinct or district, known to the

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1judges to be such, who shall take the oath following, viz:
2 I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I am a resident of
3this election precinct (or district), and entitled to vote at
4this election, and that I have been a resident of this State
5for 30 days last past, and am well acquainted with the person
6whose vote is now offered; that he is an actual and bona fide
7resident of this election precinct (or district), and has
8resided herein 30 days, and as I verily believe, in this State,
930 days next preceding this election.
10 The oath in each case may be administered by one of the
11judges of election, or by any officer, resident in the precinct
12or district, authorized by law to administer oaths. Also
13supported by an affidavit by a registered voter residing in
14such precinct, stating his own residence, and that he knows
15such person; and that he does reside at the place mentioned and
16has resided in such precinct and state for the length of time
17as stated by such person, which shall be subscribed and sworn
18to in the same way. For purposes of this Section, the
19submission of a photo identification issued by a college or
20university, accompanied by either (i) a copy of the applicant's
21contract or lease for a residence or (ii) one piece of mail
22addressed to the person at his or her current residence address
23and postmarked not earlier than 30 days prior to the date of
24the election, shall be sufficient to establish proof of
25residence. Whereupon the vote of such person shall be received,
26and entered as other votes. But such judges, having charge of

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1such registers, shall state in their respective books the facts
2in such case, and the affidavits, so delivered to the judges,
3shall be preserved and returned to the office of the
4commissioners of election. Blank affidavits of the character
5aforesaid shall be sent out to the judges of all the precincts,
6and the judges of election shall furnish the same on demand and
7administer the oaths without criticism. Such oaths, if
8administered by any other officer than such judge of election,
9shall not be received. Whenever a proposal for a constitutional
10amendment or for the calling of a constitutional convention is
11to be voted upon at the election, the separate blue ballot or
12ballots pertaining thereto shall be placed on top of the other
13ballots to be voted at the election in such manner that the
14legend appearing on the back thereof, as prescribed in Section
1516-6 of this Act, shall be plainly visible to the voter, and in
16this fashion the ballots shall be handed to the voter by the
17judge.
18 Immediately after voting, the voter shall be instructed
19whether the voting equipment, if used, accepted or rejected the
20ballot or identified the ballot as under-voted. A voter whose
21ballot is identified as under-voted for an office elected by
22ranked-choice voting a statewide constitutional office may
23return to the voting booth and complete the voting of that
24ballot. A voter whose ballot is not accepted by the voting
25equipment may, upon surrendering the ballot, request and vote
26another ballot. If a ballot for an office elected by

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1ranked-choice voting is considered under-voted because the
2ballot has crosses (X) for 2 or more candidates, the voter may,
3upon surrendering the ballot, request and vote upon another
4ballot. The voter's surrendered ballot shall be initialed by
5the election judge and handled as provided in the appropriate
6Article governing that voting equipment.
7 The voter shall, upon quitting the voting booth, deliver to
8one of the judges of election all of the ballots, properly
9folded, which he received. The judge of election to whom the
10voter delivers his ballots shall not accept the same unless all
11of the ballots given to the voter are returned by him. If a
12voter delivers less than all of the ballots given to him, the
13judge to whom the same are offered shall advise him in a voice
14clearly audible to the other judges of election that the voter
15must return the remainder of the ballots. The statement of the
16judge to the voter shall clearly express the fact that the
17voter is not required to vote such remaining ballots but that
18whether or not he votes them he must fold and deliver them to
19the judge. In making such statement the judge of election shall
20not indicate by word, gesture or intonation of voice that the
21unreturned ballots shall be voted in any particular manner. No
22new voter shall be permitted to enter the voting booth of a
23voter who has failed to deliver the total number of ballots
24received by him until such voter has returned to the voting
25booth pursuant to the judge's request and again quit the booth
26with all of the ballots required to be returned by him. Upon

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1receipt of all such ballots the judges of election shall enter
2the name of the voter, and his number, as above provided in
3this Section, and the judge to whom the ballots are delivered
4shall immediately put the ballots into the ballot box. If any
5voter who has failed to deliver all the ballots received by him
6refuses to return to the voting booth after being advised by
7the judge of election as herein provided, the judge shall
8inform the other judges of such refusal, and thereupon the
9ballot or ballots returned to the judge shall be deposited in
10the ballot box, the voter shall be permitted to depart from the
11polling place, and a new voter shall be permitted to enter the
12voting booth.
13 The judge of election who receives the ballot or ballots
14from the voter shall announce the residence and name of such
15voter in a loud voice. The judge shall put the ballot or
16ballots received from the voter into the ballot box in the
17presence of the voter and the judges of election, and in plain
18view of the public. The judges having charge of such registers
19shall then, in a column prepared thereon, in the same line of,
20the name of the voter, mark "Voted" or the letter "V".
21 No judge of election shall accept from any voter less than
22the full number of ballots received by such voter without first
23advising the voter in the manner above provided of the
24necessity of returning all of the ballots, nor shall any such
25judge advise such voter in a manner contrary to that which is
26herein permitted, or in any other manner violate the provisions

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1of this Section; provided, that the acceptance by a judge of
2election of less than the full number of ballots delivered to a
3voter who refuses to return to the voting booth after being
4properly advised by such judge shall not be a violation of this
5Section.
6 Where ranked-choice ballot tallying is used for an office
7elected by ranked-choice voting, the voter may rank his or her
8preferences for the candidates for that office. A voter shall
9not be required to rank all candidates for that office. A cross
10(X) for only one candidate shall be interpreted as a vote of
11rank 1 for that particular candidate, with no other candidate
12being ranked. Crosses (X) for 2 or more candidates shall not
13count as votes for any candidate, and shall cause the ballot to
14be identified as under-voted, shall be subject to the
15provisions for under-voted ballots in this Section.
16(Source: P.A. 98-1171, eff. 6-1-15.)
17 (10 ILCS 5/18-9) (from Ch. 46, par. 18-9)
18 Sec. 18-9. The judges of election shall first count the
19whole number of ballots in the box. If the ballots shall be
20found to exceed the number of applications for ballot, they
21shall reject the ballots, if any, found folded inside of a
22ballot. And if the ballots and the applications for ballot
23still do not agree after such rejection, the ballots shall be
24replaced in the box and the box closed and well shaken, and
25again opened; and one of the judges shall publicly draw out so

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1many ballots unopened as shall be equal to such excess. Such
2excess ballots shall be marked "Excess-Not Counted" and signed
3by a majority of judges and shall be placed in the "After 6:00
4p.m. Defective Ballots Envelope". The number of excess ballots
5shall be noted in the remarks section of the Certificate of
6Results. "Excess" ballots shall not be counted in the total of
7"defective" ballots. And the ballots and applications for
8ballot being made to agree in this way, the judges shall
9proceed to count the votes in the following manner: The judges
10shall open the ballots and place those which contain the same
11names together, so that the several kinds shall be in separate
12piles or on separate files. Each of the judges shall examine
13the separate files which are, or are supposed to be, alike, and
14exclude from such files any which may have a name or an
15erasure, or in any manner shall be different from the others of
16such file. One of the judges shall then take one file of the
17kind of ballots which contain the same names, and count them by
18tens, carefully examining each name on each of the ballots.
19Such judge shall then pass the ten ballots aforesaid to the
20judge sitting next to him, who shall count them in the same
21manner, who shall then pass them to a third judge, who shall
22also count them in the same manner. Then the third judge shall
23call the names of the persons named in the ten ballots, and the
24offices for which they are designated, and 2 of the judges, who
25did not assist in the counting shall tally ten votes for each
26of such persons, except as herein otherwise provided. When the

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1judges shall have gone through such file of ballots, containing
2the same names, and shall count them by tens in the same way,
3and shall call the names of the persons named in the ballots
4and the office for which they are designated, the tally judges
5shall tally the votes by tens for each of such persons in the
6same manner as in the first instance. When the counting of each
7file of ballots which contain the same names shall be
8completed, the tally judges shall compare their tallies
9together and ascertain the total number of ballots of that kind
10so canvassed; and when they agree upon the number, one of them
11shall announce it in a loud voice to the other judges. The
12judges shall then canvass the other kinds of ballots which do
13not correspond, those containing names partly from one kind of
14ballots and partly from another, being those from which the
15name of the person proper to be voted for on such ballots has
16been omitted or erased, usually called "scratched tickets".
17They shall be canvassed separately by one of the judges sitting
18between 2 other judges, which judge shall call each name to the
19tally judges and the office for which it is designated, and the
20other judges looking at the ballot at the same time, and the
21tally judges making tally of the same. When all the ballots
22have been canvassed in this manner, the tally judges shall
23compare their tallies together, and ascertain the total number
24of votes received by each candidate and when they agree upon
25the numbers one of them shall announce in a loud voice to the
26judges the number of votes received by each candidate on each

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1of the kinds of ballots containing his name, the number
2received by him on scratch tickets, and the total number of
3votes received by him.
4 The votes for the offices of Governor and Lieutenant
5Governor shall be counted and tallied jointly.
6 Where voting machines or electronic voting systems are
7used, the provisions of this section may be modified as
8required or authorized by Article 24 or Article 24A, whichever
9is applicable.
10 Where ranked-choice ballot tallying is used for an office
11elected by ranked-choice voting, the provisions of this Section
12may be modified as required or authorized by Section 16-4.2 of
13this Code and the judges shall abide by Section 17-18.2 of this
14Code, as applicable.
15(Source: P.A. 89-700, eff. 1-17-97.)
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