30% Of Lake Co. Voters Request Mail-In Ballots

LAKE COUNTY, IL — With more than 30 percent of registered voters in Lake County potentially voting by mail this election, officials issued guidance and reminders Tuesday on how to make sure your ballot is returned correctly and counted. Amid concerns over packed polling places as the coronavirus pandemic continues, almost 149,000 voters in Lake County have elected to vote by mail, which is nearly four times the number of mail-in ballots sent out during the last presidential election, clerk's office officials told Patch in recent weeks.

And so far, a very small percentage, just 1.4 percent or 6,786 of the 482,764 registered voters in the county, have mailed back their ballots or dropped the ballots off at a postage-free drop box, Lake County Clerk's Office deputy clerk Todd J. Govain told Patch in an e-mail response. Voters can send their ballots back via mail as long its postmarked with the Election Day date, Nov. 3, or dropped off by then.

• Want To Vote Early In Lake Co.?: Here's What You Need To Know
• Election 2020: Voter Registration Deadlines

During the 2016 presidential election, 71 percent of registered voters cast their ballot in Lake County. And while this election looks much different as concerns over the spread of COVID-19 continue, officials have been urging ballots be cast by mail with the hopes of curbing the crowds on Nov. 3.

With so many more mail-in ballots expected to determine this year's candidates, which include President Donald Trump and his democratic challenger Joe Biden, the clerk's office is providing the following guidance on making sure your mail-in ballot is counted.

Guidance For Mail-In Ballots: Don't Forget To Sign

Your ballot should include a informational sheet explaining how to complete your ballot, your options for returning it, and the location of exterior and interior postage-free ballot drop boxes.Here is what you need to know if you are among the Lake County voters casting their ballot by mail this election:

• Mark your ballot choices with a blue or black ink pen. Don't use a marker
• Fold your ballot, place it in the ballot certification envelope, seal the envelope
• Important: On the front of the ballot certification envelope sign above "Signature of Voter"
• Place the ballot certification envelope inside mailing envelope
• Add your return address
• Important: Seal the mailing envelope

The Lake County Clerk's Office does not discard ballots if the ballot certification envelope is missing or not signed, the signature doesn't match your voter registration record or the mailing envelope is not sealed. Instead election judges will send a letter describing the issue with the ballot and give instructions on how to correct it.

Voters are encouraged to protect their ballot.

"If someone offers to return your ballot for you, be sure it is someone you know and trust," Lake County Clerk Robin O' Connor said in a Tuesday statement.

In addition, the clerk's office is letting voters know that some of its ballot certification envelopes are printed with a black signature line while others have a red one.

"Our outside print vendor used one color, and we used the other," Connor said.

Here are voters options for returning mail-in ballots:

• Place one first-class stamp on the mailing envelope, have it postmarked by Election Day, and deliver to the Lake County Clerk's office by Nov. 17.
• Hand deliver it to the Lake County Clerk's office before 7 p.m. on Election Day.
• Deposit your ballot in one of the postage-free ballot drop boxes. Exterior drop boxes are available 24 hours a day and seven days per week up through 7 p.m. on Election Day outside the juvenile branch court, 24647 N. Milwaukee Ave., Vernon Hills; Mundelein Branch Court, 100 E. Route 83, Mundelein; Park City Branch Court, 301 Greenleaf St., Park City; and Round Lake Branch Court, 1792 Nicole Lane, Round Lake Beach.
• One interior drop box is in the lobby of the Lake County Main Courthouse, 18 N. County S., Waukegan. A face covering or mask is required to enter the building.
• Other interior boxes will be available when Early Voting starts on October 19. The Lake County Clerk's Office has information on how to find an early voting site.
• If you want to vote in person after receiving your vote by mail ballot, you can bring your ballot with you to the early voting site or Election Day voting site, surrender it to the judges, and receive a new ballot to mark and cast in the voting site. If you cannot surrender your ballot, election judges will help you through the process.

Track your Ballot

You can track the status and the Lake County Clerk's receipt of both your vote by mail ballot application and ballot by logging onto LakeVoterPower.info or calling the Voter Registration Services Department at 847-377-Vote (8683).

Follow along with all Illinois Election news via Patch.

MORE ON PATCH

• Your Guide To Voting In Illinois
• Coronavirus Outbreaks In County Clerk's Offices Could Impact November Election
• Armed Militias And Poll Watchers: Know The Laws In Illinois