Aurora Voter Guide: 2021 Local Elections

AURORA, IL — April 6 is Election Day again in Aurora; but that doesn’t mean you’ll have to wait until then to cast your ballot, with numerous early voting locations now open throughout Kane County.

Early voting opened across the county on March 22 and will run through April 5. Voters do not need to give a reason why they cannot make it to the polls on Election Day. They only need to fill out an application at the early voting site.

Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Election Day.

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Check to see if you are registered to vote by heading to the Illinois State Board of Elections website. The law requires registered voters to keep their name and address current, and you will not be able to vote in the election if you are not properly registered.

Registered voters in Kane County who do not have a voter's registration card or who have a question regarding their registration, should contact the Clerk's Office at 630-232-3400 (Geneva) or 630-232-5950 (Aurora satellite office).

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State laws require early voters to provide a valid photo ID to an election official before receiving a ballot to vote early. Valid forms of ID include a current driver's license, a driver's license of state ID, university/college ID or another government-issued ID with a photo, such as a passport.

Kane County is set to open more than two dozen early voting locations — including six in the Aurora area — for residents to cast their ballots ahead of the April 6 election.

Seven locations are serving as permanent locations for early and grace-period voting through April 5, and there will be eight alternative voting locations that will each be open for several days, according to Kane County Clerk John Cunningham.

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Election officials will also set up mobile voting locations at 10 locations across Kane County before Election Day, including seven Jewel-Osco stores.

Check out the map below to find more details on where and when you can vote early in Kane County.

Request A Mail-In Ballot

The last day to request a mail ballot, including military and overseas voters is April 1. The last day for mail ballots to be postmarked is April 6.

If you are returning your vote-by-mail ballot by mail, it must be postmarked by Election Day and received no later than April 20.

Your ballot can be returned to the election authority by mail or delivered in person. In-person delivery can be by either the voter or by any person authorized by the voter.

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If delivered, the ballot must be received by the election authority prior to the polls closing at 7 p.m. April 6. If mailed, it must be postmarked by Election Day.

What's On The April 6 Ballot

You can check out who is on your ballot by entering your address into the Kane County sample ballot locator.

The Aurora mayoral race sits at the top of the ballot for voters in the City of Lights. Voters are tasked with choosing the city’s leader for the next four years, with incumbent Mayor Richard Irvin seeking re-election against challengers Ald. Judd Lofchie and John Laesch.

Aurora voters will also elect several aldermen to represent them on the City Council.

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The race for the council's at-large seat is between Raymond Hull, Ron Woerman and Brooke Shanley. Races for the City Council’s 4th, 7th and 10th wards each feature two candidates.

John Bell is challenging incumbent 4th Ward Ald. William "Bill" Donnell, while Saul Fultz III is challenging incumbent 7th Ward Ald. Scheketa Hart-Burns. Arjun Nair and Shweta Baid are running to replace Lofchie as the 10th Ward's alderman.

Incumbent Ald. Juany Garza is running unopposed for re-election in Aurora’s 2nd Ward.

Five candidates — Joseph Filapek, Paul LaTour, Matthew Orr, Melinda Riddick and Ryan Cytryn — are running for seven spots on the Aurora Public Library District’s Board of Directors. Filapek, Riddick are incumbents.

Annette Johnson and Daniel Barreiro are running for three open spots on the East Aurora District 131 school board. They are both incumbents, with Johnson serving as the board’s president and Barreiro as vice president.

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Three seats on the West Aurora District 129 Board of Education are also up for grabs, with four candidates in the race: Richard Kerns, Valerie Brown Dykstra, Julie Stone and Jennifer Cresse. Kerns and Dykstra are incumbents.

Most voters will also see races for Aurora Township offices on their ballots.

Democrats William “Bill” Catching and Penny “Cassidy” Alexander are running unopposed for Aurora Township supervisor and clerk, respectively.

Republican Davis Offutt is unopposed in his bid for Aurora Township supervisor. Democrat Juan Reyna also faces no opponent in his campaign to be the township’s highway commissioner.

Four Democrats — Dolores Hicks, Juanita Wells, David Moore and Sam Nunez — are seeking four seats on the Aurora Township Board of Trustees.

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Charles Anderson is unopposed in his bid to continue serving on the Fox Valley Park District's Board of Commissioners, though no one is running for the at-large commissioner role. Anderson currently leads the board as its president.

Three races for the Kane County Regional Board of School Trustees also appear on Aurora-area ballots, though only one has a declared candidate. Winfried Cordell Cooper Jr. is running for a six-year term on the board.

Four candidates — Rebecca Oliver, Patrick Kelsey, Giselle Gonzalez and Sandra Gonzalez — are running for two open seats on the Waubonsee Community College Board of Trustees. Oliver and Kelsey are incumbents.

Randall Brown is running unopposed to continue representing District 4 on the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District’s Board of Trustees.