Richard Durbin

The 2026 Illinois general election will finally be here on November 3, and there are dozens of critical races up and down the ballot voters should know about.

In the state of Illinois, voters will choose their next U.S. senator as Juliana Stratton and Don Tracy battle to replace Sen. Dick Durbin. They will also weigh in on Gov. JB Pritzker's tenure as he runs for reelection against former State Sen. Darren Bailey.

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Five longtime members of Congress have also stepped aside in this year's race, meaning that Illinois voters will be choosing new representatives in the lower chamber this November.

In addition to the myriad of local races voters will face, there are numerous notable referenda that residents could decide upon, including issues like term limits, school construction, and even whether their counties should explore severing ties with Cook County and forming a new state.

All the while, voters will have numerous options to cast their ballots, including via mail, in-person at early voting facilities, and on Election Day itself.

With so much information to take in, NBC Chicago's Voters Guide will help take you through all the biggest issues, and inform you on how to make your voices heard.

This year, Election Day will fall on Tuesday, November 3.

Under Illinois state law, polls open at 6 a.m. on Election Day, and will remain open until 7 p.m.

Under Illinois law, early voting can begin as early as 40 days before the election, and will continue through the day of the election.

You can find more information about early voting HERE.

Before voters register to vote, they can check their current registration status on the state’s Board of Elections website.

In order to register to vote in the state of Illinois, residents must be United States citizens, must be 18 or older on the date of the general election, have lived in their election precinct at least 30 days before Election Day, must not be serving a prison sentence, and must not claim the right to vote in any other jurisdiction.

Regular voter registration and online voter registration have closed in the lead-up to the election, but grace-period (or same-day) voter registration is still available.

In order to register to vote in this way, voters must show two forms of identification, one of which must contain their current address. That can include a driver’s license, a bank statement, a residence contract, a utility bill, or a state identification card.

Once voters show proper identification, they must then cast their ballot immediately.

Voters can find sample ballot information via their county clerk’s offices, and the Board of Elections provides contact information at this link.

There are multiple ways voters can cast ballots in the state of Illinois, and we have a rundown of the most common ways below.

Early voting in the state of Illinois is underway, and is expected to continue through Monday, November 2 in many locations. You can find a full list of information here.

Illinois also offers mail-in balloting in the state’s elections.

Any registered voter can request a mail-in ballot under Illinois law. The deadline to request a ballot is five days before the election, a deadline which falls on October 29, but the State Board of Elections urges residents to request ballots sooner than that to allow for the turnaround needed to receive and submit the ballot.

In addition, mail-in ballots can be submitted up until Election Day through the United States Postal Service. Under state law, ballots must be postmarked by Election Day in order to be counted.

However, due to recent changes in the USPS’ postmarking rules, voters are urged to mail their mail-in ballots several days ahead of Election Day to guarantee they will be properly postmarked. If a voter still wants to fill out their ballot closer to the election, they can drop the completed ballot into certified dropboxes in order to guarantee receipt.

Voters can also check on the status of their mail-in ballots via the State Board of Elections’ website.

As a final note, mail-in ballots cannot be accepted at polling places. Voters who seek to do so will be offered the option to surrender their mail-in ballot and to vote in-person instead.

If voters don’t want to vote early or cast ballots via mail, they can still vote on Election Day at designated polling places.

In order to find where your polling place is, the State Board of Elections has a look-up tool on their website.

As a reminder, voters do NOT have to present identification to vote in the state of Illinois, though it can typically smooth out the process if there are questions about a voter’s current address.

Voters do have to sign an affidavit swearing they are voting only once and in their proper polling place, and it is a violation of state law to falsely attest to that information.

As another reminder, if a voter wants to register to vote on Election Day, they must present two forms of identification, including at least one with their current address, in order to receive a ballot.

Polls open at 6 a.m. on Election Day, and remain open through 7 p.m.

In this year’s general election, Illinois residents will vote in statewide offices, including for governor, secretary of state, treasurer, comptroller, and attorney general.

In addition, Illinois voters will vote on their next United States senator, as Sen. Dick Durbin is retiring from the chamber at the end of his term.

Voters will choose their representatives in Congress, with several districts electing new representatives in this year’s election.

At the local level, all voters will have state representatives on their ballots, while some districts will also choose their state senators.

You can find more information on some of the biggest races to watch HERE.

There are no statewide referendums on the ballot in this year’s election, but there are several countywide questions that voters will face.

In Cook County, suburban voters will be asked whether the state should adopt a so-called ‘Millionaire’s Tax,’ which would add a 3% income tax surcharge on taxpayers who make more than $1 million a year.

In Chicago, voters will be asked three questions, including whether the city should pursue financial compensation from the federal government in the wake of Operation Midway Blitz.

Grundy County voters will be asked if officials should study consolidating school districts, fire protection districts, and other governmental bodies.

Lake County voters will be asked if they should institute a 1% countywide sales tax to be used for school facilities, resource officers, and mental health professionals, while Kankakee County voters will be asked if they should elect school board members on an at-large basis.

Downstate, there will be a total of 11 counties voting on whether or not they wish to separate themselves from Cook County and to form a brand new state.

You can find more information on those questions here.

At the statewide level, voters will decide whether to reelect Gov. JB Pritzker, or if former State Sen. Darren Bailey will ascend to the top political job in the state.

All other statewide offices are also up for grabs, including Illinois comptroller, as State Rep. Margaret Croke and attorney Bryan Drew vie for the job of replacing retiring Comptroller Susana Mendoza, who is running for Chicago mayor in February.

Illinois Lt. Gov. Julianna Stratton is running for U.S. Senate, and she’ll be facing former GOP chairman Don Tracy in the election to replace Durbin in the Senate.

All 17 of the state’s Congressional seats are also up for grabs, with several incumbents not running for reelection. Rep. Robin Kelly’s 2nd district seat will be open, with Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller running against Republican contender Mike Noack.

Businesswoman Jennifer Davis and former Rep. Melissa Bean are running to replace Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi in Illinois’ 8th district, and state Rep. LaShawn Ford is running against pil