It's voting time, Illinois.
Tuesday, March 19, is the 2024 Illinois Primary Election, where voters will cast ballots on local referendums and choose their preferred nominees in all of the races, including the presidential race in November.
As voting winds down, here's where we're keeping track of live updates from election day across the state.
11:30 p.m. - Darren Bailey concedes to Rep. Mike Bost in 12th District Republican primary
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
Former State Senator Darren Bailey has conceded to Rep. Mike Bost in the 12th District Republican primary, though the Associated Press has yet to project the race, according to Mark Maxwell of KSDK.
10:50 p.m. - Cook County State's Attorney, 'Bring Chicago Home' referendum remain uncalled
Local
The races for the Cook County State's Attorney Democratic primary and the "Bring Chicago Home" referendum remained uncalled Tuesday night, with a large amount of outstanding mail-in ballots preventing a definitive projection.
"No" votes led "Yes" votes by just over 23,000 ballots with approximately 98% of precincts reporting for the "Bring Chicago Home" referendum.
In the Cook County State's Attorney Democratic primary, Eileen O'Neill Burke led Clayton Harris by just under 10,000 votes with 99% of precincts reporting.
Max Bever of the Chicago Board of Elections estimates that 70,000 to 80,000 of the city's nearly 110,000 outstanding mail-in ballots will be returned.
8:45 p.m. - Incumbent Iris Martinez loses primary challenge to Mariyana Spyropoulos for Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court
Incumbent Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County Iris Martinez lost a Democratic primary challenge to Mariyana Spyropoulos, as the Associated Press has projected Spyropoulos as the winner with around 66% of the vote with 90% of precincts reporting.
Martinez had held the seat since December 2020.
8:30 p.m. - Bill Foster projected to win 11th congressional district Democratic primary
Rep. Bill Foster, who has represented the 11th congressional district since January 2013, is projected by the Associated Press to win the suburban district, taking down human rights lawyer Qasim Rashid in the primary.
Including much of Aurora and Naperville while stretching north up to Belvidere, the 11th district is expected to stay Democratic in November.
8:10 p.m. - Rep. Danny Davis projected to win Democratic primary in Illinois' 7th congressional district
Longtime congressman Danny Davis appears to be destined for another term in Washington, as the Associated Press has projected him to be the winner of the 7th district Democratic primary.
Davis, who has represented the West Side and west suburbs-based district since 1997, defeated challengers Kina Collins, Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, Kouri Marshall and Nikhil Bhatia in the primary.
7:55 p.m. - Rep. Chuy García projected to win Democratic primary for Illinois' 4th congressional district
The Associated Press has projected that Congressman Chuy García will win the Democratic primary in Illinois' 4th congressional district, fending off a challenge from Chicago Ald. Raymond Lopez.
García, a two-time Chicago mayoral candidate who has held the congressional seat since January 2019, is expected to hold on to his seat in the strongly Democratic district in the November general election.
7:50 p.m. - Rep. Sean Casten projected to win 6th District Democratic primary
Congressman Sean Casten, who has represented Illinois' 6th congressional district since January 2019, is projected to win the Democratic primary over competitors Charles M. Hughes and Mahnoor Ahmad.
The sixth congressional district encompasses parts of Chicago's south and west suburbs, including parts of southern Cook and eastern DuPage counties.
7:35 p.m. - Illinois Democratic, Republican parties congratulate Biden, Trump on victory in Illinois
The Illinois Democratic and Republican parties both issued statements congratulating Joe Biden and Donald Trump respectively on their primary victory in Illinois Tuesday.
"Now is the time to come together as one party, to recruit, encourage and persuade all of our fellow Republicans and independents to re-elect President Trump and end the Biden-Pritzker agenda of open borders, pro-criminal legislation, and taxing-and-spending your family's hard earned dollars," the statement read in part.
7:30 p.m. - Chicago issues turnout update after polls close
Chicago election officials issued a final update after polls closed on Tuesday, with current ballots constituting a 20.24% citywide turnout.
Turnout in the final two hours was the highest in Chicago than at any other point throughout the day, with over 47,000 ballots cast after 5 p.m. alone.
Vote-by-mail votes that did not arrive by Tuesday will be counted over the course of the next two weeks, which could slightly impact final turnout numbers.
7:15 p.m. - Trump, Biden cruise to Illinois presidential primary victories
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, already the presumptive
nominees for America’s two major political parties, have both won the 2024 Illinois
presidential primaries, NBC News projects.
Biden and Trump both secured enough projected delegates to earn the
“presumptive nominee” label on March 12, according to NBC News projections.
7 p.m. - Polls officially close in Illinois
Polls are officially closed in Illinois for the 2024 primary elections, with results expected to start flowing in shortly. Follow along in the player above for live coverage.
6:10 p.m. - Watch live election coverage on the NBC Chicago 24/7 streaming channel
With polls closing in less than an hour, keep yourself up to date with results as they come in and follow along with live coverage on the NBC Chicago 24/7 streaming channel.
Coverage can be found here, as well as in the video player at the top of this page.
5:15 p.m. - Citywide turnout at just under 17% with less than 2 hours of voting left
Despite a significant jump in voters heading to the polls in the last two hours, turnout remains very low in Chicago with just two more hours left until polls close.
According to the Chicago Board of Elections, 33,456 ballots were cast in between 3 and 5 p.m., bringing the overall vote total, including early and mail-in ballots, to 287,621 votes.
The youth turnout has also slightly risen in the past two hours, with voters ages 34 and under now making up 15.32% of the city's total vote.
3:25 p.m. - Chicago turnout at just under 15% with less than 4 hours of voting to go
A few hours after city officials spoke of "shockingly low" turnout for the Illinois primary elections in Chicago, the most recent afternoon update shows a slight increase in voters by hour, though still well below what's been seen in years past.
According to the Chicago Board of Elections, there have been a total of 84,767 Election Day ballots cast as of 3 p.m., with 24,761 ballots being cast between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Of the overall 253,798 total ballots cast thus far, just over 40 percent have come from voters ages 65 and older. Just 14.65% of votes have come from voters ages 34 and younger.
3:10 p.m. - Lake County Clerk announces early voting turnout
While there's still a few hours left to head to the polls, Illinois' third-most populous county has announced its early voting turnout.
According to the Lake County Clerk, 11,081 votes were cast during early voting in the northern suburban county, with 6,236 of those votes coming from voters ages 65 and older.
That's significantly lower than turnout in 2016 and 2020, which featured a total of 26,206 and 33,989 early votes cast respectively.
3 p.m. - In case you were wondering, Indiana's primary election is not today
While the Chicago area is locked in on elections with Illinois being one of five states holding primaries on Tuesday, neighboring Indiana is not among the states choosing candidates for the November general elections.
Voters in Indiana will head to the polls on Tuesday, May 7, standing as the only state to hold primary elections on that date.
Though Indiana is voting late in the primary season, they're not the last state on the schedule, with the final primary elections for the presidential race slated for June 4.
2 p.m. — Officials report 'shockingly low turnout' on Election Day
Chicago's voter turnout on Election Day is lower than expected, officials with the Chicago Board of Elections said during an update Tuesday afternoon.
"It looks like we're looking at a shockingly low turnout for Election Day," said Max Bever, director of public information for CBOE.
According to the CBOE, Chicago's turnout on Tuesday is low even compared to the city's past municipal and midterm elections, which typically see a lower turnout in general.
"Typically, we see 16,000 to 22,000 [ballots cast] per hour," Bever said. "Today, 'we're between 9,000 and 10,000 as of mid-day.
Bever further characterized the turnout as "sleepy."
"It's definitely an election that's clearly being driven by older voters, especially 55 and up, who represent just over 60% of the voters who have cast ballots so far in the city of Chicago," Bever said.
Bever added that 109,000 mail-in ballots have yet to be received back.
Bever also noted that the low turnout could make for closer races.
"If some of the races are close tonight, especially citywide, with the citywide referendum question, Cook County State's Attorney's ... we might be in for a longer night," Bever added.
Finally, a reminder from Bever: If you are in line before 7 p.m., you can vote. You will not be turned away
1:15 — How to get live election results
From the U.S. presidential race to local referendums like the proposed real estate transfer tax known as "Bring Chicago Home," voters in Illinois have plenty to consider this 2024 primary election day.
How will the races fare? To track live Illinois Primary election results Tuesday from around the state, bookmark this page on NBCChicago.com and the NBC Chicago app.
As votes are tallied, results will appear on NBC Chicago's live election results page on the website and the app. Polls close at 7 p.m. Tuesday, and results will begin populating in the first half-hour and be updated live as counted votes roll in.
12:45 p.m. — Long lines reported at Chicago voting site
Lots of Chicagoans appear to be voting on their lunch break.
Around 12:45 p.m. Tuesday, a line of voters at Chicago's Board of Elections voting Supersite stretched back at least half-a-block, photos shot.
12 p.m. — Voter turnout update
According to the Chicago Board of Elections, as of 12 p.m. on Tuesday, the city has a 12.21% voter turnout so far. Residents between the ages of 65 and 74 are leading the voter turnout, with 23.42% of ballots cast, the CBOE said.
The age group with the lowest turnout so far is those aged 17-24, the CBOE said. According to officials, that group makes up only 2.84% of ballots cast.
10 a.m. — Find your polling place
You can find your nearest polling place by entering your zip code here.
9: a.m. — What's on your ballot?
If you want to get a peek at what your ballot will look like before you head to the polls, this tool can help.
8 a.m. — How to research the judges on your ballot
Many of the names on the 2024 ballot for Illinois primary election this cycle are judicial candidates.
While those races may not garner as much attention as the names at the top of each ticket, experts say voters should research every candidate, because those judicial seats carry a lot of power.
Here's how to use guides from the Illinois State Bar Association and other organizations to help research the judges on your ballot.
6:30 a.m. — Polling place in 16th ward closed due to fire
A fire has closed one Chicago polling location.
According to the Chicago Board of Elections, a fire broke out early Monday at Nicolson STEM Academy, which was serving as a polling place for the 21st and 25th precincts in the 16th ward.
The CBOE says the precincts have been moved to the following voting new locations:
- 16th Ward, 21st Precinct - NEW POLLING PLACE: Monteclare Englewood, 6332 S. Green St.
- 16th Ward, 25th Precinct - NEW POLLING PLACE: Hope Manor, 6002 S. Halsted St.
You can find a polling place near you here.
6:15 a.m. — Where voter turnout stands
As of March 18, early voter turnout stands at 157,858 ballots cast, the Chicago Board of Elections says. According to the CBOE, this is considered low.
"It is extremely important," Marisel Hernandez, Chairwoman of Chicago Board of Election Commissioners said Monday morning, in an effort to call on more voters to come to the polls. "All of the people nominated will have a direct impacts on our lives."
According to the CBOE, in-person voting accounted for 91,459 of those votes. Vote-by-mail ballots stood at 66,399.
6 a.m. —Illinois polling hours
Polls are open on Illinois on election day at 6 a.m. They will remain open until 7 p.m. And, remember: if you are IN LINE when polls close at 7 p.m., you can still vote!
