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Article 1 - General Provisions

      (10 ILCS 5/Art. 1 heading)ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

(10 ILCS 5/1‑1) (from Ch. 46, par. 1‑1)     Sec. 1‑1. This Act may be cited as the Election Code. This Act is the general election law of Illinois and any reference in any other Act to "the general election law" or "the general election law of this State" is a reference to this Act, as now or hereafter amended. (Source: P.A. 86‑1475.)

(10 ILCS 5/1‑2) (from Ch. 46, par. 1‑2)     Sec. 1‑2. The provisions of this Act, so far as they are the same as those of any prior statute, shall be construed as a continuation of such prior provisions, and not as a new enactment.     If in any other statute reference is made to an Act of the General Assembly, or a section of such an Act, which is continued in this election Code, such reference shall be held to refer to the Act or section thereof so continued in this Code. (Source: Laws 1943, vol. 2, p. 1.)

    (10 ILCS 5/1‑3)(from Ch. 46, par. 1‑3)
    Sec. 1‑3. As used in this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:
    1. "Election" includes the submission of all questions of public policy, propositions, and all measures submitted to popular vote, and includes primary elections when so indicated by the context.
    2. "Regular election" means the general, general primary, consolidated and consolidated primary elections regularly scheduled in Article 2A. The even numbered year municipal primary established in Article 2A is a regular election only with respect to those municipalities in which a primary is required to be held on such date.
    3. "Special election" means an election not regularly recurring at fixed intervals, irrespective of whether it is held at the same time and place and by the same election officers as a regular election.
    4. "General election" means the biennial election at which members of the General Assembly are elected. "General primary election", "consolidated election" and "consolidated primary election" mean the respective elections or the election dates designated and established in Article 2A of this Code.
    5. "Municipal election" means an election or primary, either regular or special, in cities, villages, and incorporated towns; and "municipality" means any such city, village or incorporated town.
    6. "Political or governmental subdivision" means any unit of local government, or school district in which elections are or may be held. "Political or governmental subdivision" also includes, for election purposes, Regional Boards of School Trustees, and Township Boards of School Trustees.
    7. The word "township" and the word "town" shall apply interchangeably to the type of governmental organization established in accordance with the provisions of the Township Code. The term "incorporated town" shall mean a municipality referred to as an incorporated town in the Illinois Municipal Code, as now or hereafter amended.
    8. "Election authority" means a county clerk or a Board of Election Commissioners.
    9. "Election Jurisdiction" means (a) an entire county, in the case of a county in which no city board of election commissioners is located or which is under the jurisdiction of a county board of election commissioners; (b) the territorial jurisdiction of a city board of election commissioners; and (c) the territory in a county outside of the jurisdiction of a city board of election commissioners. In each instance election jurisdiction shall be determined according to which election authority maintains the permanent registration records of qualified electors.
    10. "Local election official" means the clerk or secretary of a unit of local government or school district, as the case may be, the treasurer of a township board of school trustees, and the regional superintendent of schools with respect to the various school officer elections and school referenda for which the regional superintendent is assigned election duties by The School Code, as now or hereafter amended.
    11. "Judges of election", "primary judges" and similar terms, as applied to cases where there are 2 sets of judges, when used in connection with duties at an election during the hours the polls are open, refer to the team of judges of election on duty during such hours; and, when used with reference to duties after the closing of the polls, refer to the team of tally judges designated to count the vote after the closing of the polls and the holdover judges designated pursuant to Section 13‑6.2 or 14‑5.2. In such case, where, after the closing of the polls, any act is required to be performed by each of the judges of election, it shall be performed by each of the tally judges and by each of the holdover judges.
    12. "Petition" of candidacy as used in Sections 7‑10 and 7‑10.1 shall consist of a statement of candidacy, candidate's statement containing oath, and sheets containing signatures of qualified primary electors bound together.
    13. "Election district" and "precinct", when used with reference to a 30‑day residence requirement, means the smallest constituent territory in which electors vote as a unit at the same polling place in any election governed by this Act.
    14. "District" means any area which votes as a unit for the election of any officer, other than the State or a unit of local government or school district, and includes, but is not limited to, legislative, congressional and judicial districts, judicial circuits, county board districts, municipal and sanitary district wards, school board districts, and precincts.
    15. "Question of public policy" or "public question" means any question, proposition or measure submitted to the voters at an election dealing with subject matter other than the nomination or election of candidates and shall include, but is not limited to, any bond or tax referendum, and questions relating to the Constitution.
    16. "Ordinance providing the form of government of a municipality or county pursuant to Article VII of the Constitution" includes ordinances, resolutions and petitions adopted by referendum which provide for the form of government, the officers or the manner of selection or terms of office of officers of such municipality or county, pursuant to the provisions of Sections 4, 6 or 7 of Article VII of the Constitution.
    17. "List" as used in Sections 4‑11, 4‑22, 5‑14, 5‑29, 6‑60, and 6‑66 shall include a computer tape or computer disc or other electronic data processing information containing voter information.
    18. "Accessible" means accessible to handicapped and elderly individuals for the purpose of voting or registration, as determined by rule of the State Board of Elections.
    19. "Elderly" means 65 years of age or older.
    20. "Handicapped" means having a temporary or permanent physical disability.
    21. "Leading political party" means one of the two political parties whose candidates for governor at the most recent three gubernatorial elections received either the highest or second highest average number of votes. The political party whose candidates for governor received the highest average number of votes shall be known as the first leading political party and the political party whose candidates for governor received the second highest average number of votes shall be known as the second leading political party.
    22. "Business day" means any day in which the office of an election authority, local election official or the State Board of Elections is open to the public for a minimum of 7 hours.
    23. "Homeless individual" means any person who has a nontraditional residence, including, but not limited to, a shelter, day shelter, park bench, street corner, or space under a bridge.
(Source: P.A. 96‑1000, eff. 7‑2‑10.)

(10 ILCS 5/1‑4) (from Ch. 46, par. 1‑4)     Sec. 1‑4. In any case in which this Act prescribes a period of time within which petitions for nomination must be filed, the office in which petitions must be filed shall remain open for the receipt of such petitions until 5:00 P.M. on the last day of the filing period. (Source: P.A. 80‑1469.)

(10 ILCS 5/1‑5) (from Ch. 46, par. 1‑5)     Sec. 1‑5. (Repealed). (Source: P.A. 86‑873. Repealed by P.A. 89‑653, eff. 8‑14‑96.)

(10 ILCS 5/1‑6)     Sec. 1‑6. Computing dates of various acts; Saturday, Sunday, and holidays.     (a) If the first or last day fixed by law to do any act required or allowed by this Code falls on a State holiday or a Saturday or a Sunday, the period shall extend through the first business day next following the day otherwise fixed as the first or last day, irrespective of whether any election authority or local election official conducts business on the State holiday, Saturday, or Sunday.     (b) For the purposes of this Section, "State holiday" means New Year's Day, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday, Lincoln's Birthday, President's Day, Casimir Pulaski's Birthday, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans' Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and any other day from time to time declared by the President of the United States or the Governor of Illinois to be a day during which the agencies of the State of Illinois that are ordinarily open to do business with the public shall be closed for business.     (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, nominating papers, petitions of objection to nominating papers, certificates of withdrawal of candidacy, and reports of political committees actually received by election authorities and local election officials on a State holiday, a Saturday, or a Sunday shall not be deemed invalid or defective for that reason alone. (Source: P.A. 89‑653, eff. 8‑14‑96; 90‑672, eff. 7‑31‑98.)

(10 ILCS 5/1‑7)     Sec. 1‑7. No straight party voting. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, straight party voting by a single vote is not permitted in Illinois. (Source: P.A. 89‑700, eff. 1‑17‑97.)

    (10 ILCS 5/1‑8)
    Sec. 1‑8. Canvassing boards abolished. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, local canvassing boards are abolished. In this Code or any other law a reference to a local or county canvassing board means (i) for elections in which the political subdivision that is choosing candidates or submitting a public question is located entirely within the jurisdiction of a single election authority, that election authority and (ii) for elections for offices and public questions not listed in Section 22‑1 of this Code in which the political subdivision that is choosing candidates or submitting a public question is located within the jurisdiction of 2 or more election authorities, the election authority having jurisdiction over the location at which the political subdivision has its principal office.
(Source: P.A. 94‑647, eff. 1‑1‑06.)

    (10 ILCS 5/1‑9)
    Sec. 1‑9. Central counting of grace period, early, absentee, and provisional ballots. Notwithstanding any statutory provision to the contrary enacted before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly, all grace period ballots, early voting ballots, absentee ballots, and provisional ballots to be counted shall be delivered to and counted at an election authority's central ballot counting location and not in precincts. References in this Code enacted before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly to delivery and counting of grace period ballots, early voting ballots, absentee ballots, or provisional ballots to or at a precinct polling place or to the proper polling place shall be construed as references to delivery and counting of those ballots to and at the election authority's central ballot counting location.
(Source: P.A. 94‑1000, eff. 7‑3‑06.)

(10 ILCS 5/1‑10)     Sec. 1‑10. Public comment. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the State Board of Elections in evaluating the feasibility of any new voting system shall seek and accept public comment from persons of the disabled community, including but not limited to organizations of the blind. (Source: P.A. 93‑574, eff. 8‑21‑03.)

    (10 ILCS 5/1‑15)
    Sec. 1‑15. Procedures for the disposal of election records. This Code is subject to the provisions of Section 14a of the Local Records Act.
(Source: P.A. 96‑475, eff. 8‑14‑09.)