Elections

McLean County Board members grilled County Clerk Kathy Michael for more than 40 minutes yesterday concerning more than $400,000 in budget overages in her office that Michael has asked the county to pay.

The McLean County Clerk’s Office, which oversees voting through the county outside of Bloomington, and the Bloomington Election Commission [BEC], will offer early voting at their offices at the Government Center on weekdays Feb. 5 through March 16 and on the weekends of March 7-8 and 14-15.

The Bloomington Election Commission is seeking applicants to fill the commissioner seat Terry Luce is vacating. Luce, a Republican, chose not to seek reappointment after her term expired on Dec. 31.

The two top election officials in McLean County also defended mail-in voting — a common practice that's facing renewed attacks from President Trump. He's made baseless claims about the security of mail-in ballots.

The U.S. Department of Justice last month requested information regarding statewide election procedures.

U.S. Senate candidate Raja Krishnamoorthi spoke to Bloomington-Normal area Democrats during a stop Friday in downtown Bloomington.

A recent graduate of Illinois State University is a recipient of Southern Illinois University (SIU) Carbondale’s Paul Simon Democracy Award. After graduating in May, Bloomington native Ben Muncy will return to campus in the fall to complete a voter registration drive for students.

Two incumbents are headed back to the Heartland Community College Board of Trustees, along with one newcomer, following Tuesday's election.

The new sales tax takes effect July 1. Earning around 53% of the vote, the referendum was one of several factors contributing to an increased voter turnout compared to previous municipal elections.

The Twin City school districts have added transparency dashboards on their websites to show where funding would be spent if the new sales tax is approved April 1.