SPRINGFIELD, Illinois — An O'Fallon, Illinois, woman got a postcard in the mail claiming, "Whether you vote is public record." She asked the Verify team to look into the claim.
We dug into the facts to find the answer.
THE QUESTION:
Is it true your election participation is public record in the state of Illinois?
OUR SOURCES:
- Matt Dietrich, spokesperson for the Illinois Board of Elections
- National Conference of State Legislatures
THE ANSWER:
Yes, your election participation is public record in the state of Illinois.
WHAT WE FOUND:
If someone has your first and last name and where you're registered to vote in Illinois, they can access your voting history. Your voting history will list the election in which you participated.
To do this, a person would have to request the information from the local election authority. Some election authorities require the request be made in person and others take requests online.
The other option is to go to the Illinois State Board of Elections in Springfield, where state law requires terminals be made available for public viewing of voter information.
The process is different for registered political committees. Those organizations pay a $500 fee and get access to the voter data of every registered voter in the state. These political groups also get access to a site that lets them track in real time whether people have voted early, requested mail-in ballots and whether they've returned them.
VERIFY
Do you have a question you want us to VERIFY? Email verify@ksdk.com with your claim.
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