Online Voting Offers False: Illinois Election Board

SPRINGFIELD, IL — Illinois does not offer online voting, despite what websites, social media posts and other messages might claim, according to the State Board of Elections. The agency issued the warning Friday after it received numerous calls from residents asking about online voting.

U.S. voters cannot cast their ballots online, the election board said. Some states allow exceptions for military officials and U.S. residents overseas, but Illinois is not one of those, according to the agency.

Any app, website, social media account claiming to offer online voting should be considered fraudulent, and voters should report those cases to the Illinois State Election Board. That information will be passed along to authorities, who will investigate, the agency said.

Social media and text message campaigns offering online voting had popped up during the 2016 election, according to the state board. Federal investigators believe the goal was to suppress the vote by keeping potential voters from casting legitimate votes through the proper early voting procedure or on Election Day, the agency added.

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Any messages, websites or other content offering online voting should be sent to the election board at scamalert@elections.il.gov.

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