Election 2026 - Bloomington and Normal have light ballots this year
The 2026 primary election is March 17. The general election is Nov. 3.
The primary ballot, at least for local races, is light.
There are no contested primaries for McLean County races, including 10 county board seats. (Seven of the races will be contested in the general election in November.) Three Republican candidates for sheriff [Lt. Jon Albee], county clerk [Kathy Michael] and treasurer [Rebecca McNeil] are running unopposed.
Four Republicans are running for governor trying to unseat Democrat JB Pritzker, who is running for a third term.
Democrats and Republicans both have crowded primaries for the U.S. Senate as Dick Durbin is retiring after this term.
There are two Republican candidates, Julie Bickelhaupt and Dillan Vancil, running for the seat held by two-term Democrat Eric Sorensen in Congress, a seat that includes parts of Bloomington-Normal.
Early voting began Feb. 5.
As a reminder, McLean County has two election authorities. Bloomington voters are handled by the Bloomington Election Commission. Voters in Normal and rural McLean County are served by the McLean County clerk.
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Nearly 4,000 voters in McLean County have cast ballots in person or by mail. That's about 3% percent of registered voters in the county. -
Eighteen former U.S. Department of Justice attorneys filed a brief in federal court this week opposing the Trump administration’s lawsuit that seeks access to sensitive personal information about every registered voter in Illinois. -
Gov. JB Pritzker denied a since-recanted comment by former President Bill Clinton that Clinton thought the pair may have traveled together on a plane owned by convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. -
Republicans Don Tracy, Casey Chlebek and Pamela Denise Long participated in a candidate forum broadcast Thursday on WTVP and presented by the League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria and the League of Women Voters of Illinois. -
Democrats Robin Kelly, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Juliana Stratton participated in candidate forum broadcast Thursday on WTVP and presented by the League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria and the League of Women Voters of Illinois. -
As Illinois awaits court decisions about federal funding cuts and braces for even further cuts amid rising costs, Gov. JB Pritzker is proposing limited new spending — and yearning for “normal problems.” -
JB Pritzker will propose a plan during his State of the State address to drastically limit local governments’ authority to restrict the types of structures that can be built on property zoned residential. -
Voters within the Randolph Fire Protection District will be able to decide whether or not $4 million of bonds will be issued to build a new fire station in Heyworth, replacing the current 70-year-old structure. -
Bailey leaning on running mate from Cook County to win over urban voters -
People report lengthy delays long after judges approve expungement and sealing orders
