WTTW News reporters are spread out across Chicago covering the 2026 election. Check back throughout the day for continuous updates on local, state and national races.

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.

In Chicago, 126,320 in-person early vote ballots were cast through Thursday, a 35% increase from the same time during the 2022 general election, according to data from the Chicago Board of Elections.

The first batch of candidates seeking to deny Mayor Brandon Johnson a second term each filed tens of thousands of signatures Monday to officially get on the Feb. 23 ballot, waiting in line for hours among aspiring alderpeople, staff members, lawyers and candidates for other offices.

“It’s important to make a voting plan today,” said Chicago Board of Elections Chairwoman Marisel Hernandez during a Monday news conference. “Decide who you’re voting for before you get to your early voting location, and make your voices heard. Make your vote count.”

Early voting for the November general election kicked off Thursday at two locations in downtown Chicago, with more early voting locations across the city expected to open later this month.

With the November election approaching, the Chicago Board of Elections and Cook County Clerk’s Office are looking for people to serve as poll workers on Election Day. Election judges must be a registered voter or an eligible college or high school student.

Candidates will hit the street to gather thousands of autographs from registered voters a month earlier than aspiring candidates did four years ago, the last time all 50 alderpeople, the mayor, city clerk and city treasurer faced voters.

For three decades, Chicago voters have not had a direct say in who represents them on the city’s Board of Education. And many may not have much of a choice again this fall, despite an otherwise historic election in which all 21 school board seats are on the ballot in November’s general election.

Thanks to an evening surge in voters, Chicago's unofficial turnout for the 2026 primaries inched over 25%, with the tallying of additional mail-in and provisional ballots likely to boost the numbers even more.

When polls open Tuesday at 6 a.m., voters and poll workers will be greeted with sub-zero wind chills in Chicago. Could the cold have an icy effect on voter turnout?

Poll watching is one part of a broader response network the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and Asian Americans Advancing Justice Chicago have partnered up to build in order to monitor possible cases of voter intimidation and federal immigration agents near polling places during the primary election. Legal volunteers, field volunteers, local rapid response teams and volunteer hotline operators will also be mobilizing as part of the effort.

Early voting sites opened in all of Chicago’s 50 wards Monday. Early voting also expanded to a total of 55 locations for suburban Cook County residents.

Early voting for the March 17 primary election is now open at the Chicago Board of Elections office, located at 69 W. Washington St. on the 6th floor, and at the new Chicago Board of Elections supersite, located at 137 S. State St.

The proposed non-binding ballot question violates Illinois’ election law, which requires advisory questions to “be confined to one topic and should not contain alternative or bifurcated questions,” the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners unanimously ruled.

On the last day ballots will be counted, unofficial totals in Chicago show where the vote shifted since 2020. Much like the United States, voters in Illinois were driven by factors including economics, immigration and education in the presidential race.