UPDATE: A bill that would have reauthorized the use of secure drop boxes in the February and April elections stalled just short of passage in the General Assembly’s lame duck session, which ended Jan. 13. We will continue our work to promote safe and accessible elections in Illinois.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Illinois experienced record turnout for the Nov. 3 presidential election because state lawmakers had the foresight to enact emergency measures.
Among the most popular and successful measures was the authorization of secure drop boxes at early voting sites. Voters who had applied for mail ballots were able to avoid lines at polling places and hand-deliver those ballots to local election authorities.
The emergency voting law has expired, but the pandemic has not. The Better Government Association has been working with Promote the Vote, a coalition of nonprofits, to urge lawmakers to reauthorize the use of drop boxes to ensure safe voting in local elections in February and April 2021.
The coalition’s statement to the General Assembly is shared below.
