Image courtesy of BBC.

If you read the news, listen to the radio, or are simply friends with people who are way too into politics, you’ll know full well that the 2020 election is happening very soon. You live in Illinois. You’re a high school senior, presumably of age or soon to be so. What do you have to do in order to vote?

Well, clueless reader, here’s a 6 step process to vote in the primary election.

1. Be a citizen of the United States. If you’re not a citizen, you can definitely still volunteer or work for campaigns if you want to be involved!
2. Be 18 by November 3. In the state of Illinois, you can vote in the primaries if you’re 17, but only if you turn 18 by the date of the general election. So if you won’t be 18 for another few months, but you will be a legal adult by November, you’re good to go and can register to vote already.
3. Register to vote! Check this website to see if you’re registered. If you aren’t, it’s very easy to do online; just go to vote.gov and fill out all the necessary information. Thank your lucky stars that you live in Illinois; you can register to vote online a month in advance, and you can even do so in person on the day of the election. You’ll need your social security number and driver’s license number (if you drive) or state ID number (if you don’t drive) to register online.
4. Know who you’re voting for! Check out the DuPage election authority’s website for a sample ballot right here.  If you don’t know these people’s names, Google them! Try to educate yourself on who you’re voting for so you aren’t going into this completely blind. Ballotpedia is a fantastic resource that you can use to see a list of who’s running in your area and what will be on the ballot. In the presidential election, try ISideWith if you’re unsure of which candidate you agree with the most.
   A little tip: if you don’t necessarily know who to vote for, especially in a local election, you are allowed to leave spaces blank on your ballot. You don’t have to vote in every single race, and although I’m not trying to encourage apathy, I do think it’s important to acknowledge that it is a possibility if you don’t wish to vote in all local elections.
   In the primary election, you’ll be asked to choose if you want a Democratic or Republican ballot. Choose wisely; you’ll only be able to vote in one party’s primaries. It doesn’t even have to be the party you agree most with, although most people tend to choose that.
5. If you’re busy on election day or don’t want to make a trip over to the polling station, Illinois law guarantees that you can vote early in person or by mail. Early voting can be done in person at Fox Valley Mall, Stratford Square Mall, or at COD; you can learn more here. You can also vote by mail; request your ballot here, and you’ll receive it soon enough! Do your voting and send it off; as long as it’s postmarked by election day, you’re good to go.
   OR …
6. Vote at the polling station in person on Election Day. You can check the DuPage County website to see where you would go to vote; locations include local community centers, schools, and more. You’ll be able to get your ballot there and vote; you can even register to vote on Election Day. In the state of Illinois, you don’t even need to bring an ID to vote.

And that’s it! You’ve successfully voted (unless they tossed your ballot if you did something wrong). Give yourself a pat on the back for contributing to American democracy and resisting political apathy.

Image courtesy of Giphy.