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 The date for the Special Primary Election is July 7th, and the
date for the Special General Election is September 10th. The writs
have been modified from their original filing after a federal judge
approved a consent decree to comply with the federal Uniformed and
Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.
As prescribed by Illinois law, the first day for candidates of
established political parties to file original nomination papers
with the State Board of Elections will be Wednesday, April 15, 2015.
The last day to file nomination papers will be Monday, April 20,
2015. Those dates are not modified by the consent decree.
Additional Background
For years, the Illinois Election Code has prescribed a timeline for
conducting special elections for U.S. Representative that is not
compliant with federal law. The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens
Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) is intended to protect the voting
rights of citizens residing abroad, including in particular military
men and women stationed overseas. Illinois law, however, does not
provide sufficient time for ballots to be mailed abroad.
For that reason, the State of Illinois entered into a consent decree
with the U.S. Department of Justice in 2013 to bring the State
temporarily into compliance with UOCAVA for the last special
election for U.S. Representative. Governor Rauner, Attorney General
Madigan, and the Illinois State Board of Elections are now working
cooperatively with the Department of Justice to enter into a similar
consent decree for the special election caused by former Rep.
Schock’s resignation.
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This problem has persisted without a permanent solution for too
long. Governor Rauner is working with the General Assembly
leadership to pass legislation to protect the voting rights of our
military men and women serving overseas, while still providing that
any vacancy is filled as expeditiously as possible to ensure full
representation in Congress for the people of Illinois.
[Office of the Governor Bruce Rauner]
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