Despite Monday’s snow flurries in Chicago, thousands of voters took time to cast ballots on the first day of early voting for the April 7 runoff election.
As of 5:15 p.m. Monday, 7,915 ballots were cast, according to an unofficial total provided by the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. That beats the previous record for ballots cast on the first day of early voting in a Chicago municipal election, which was 6,133 ballots ahead of the 2011 city election, according to the city’s election data.
“We’re very pleased. It’s a good indicator of how early voting is going to go for rest of the way,” spokesman Jim Allen said, adding that a good start doesn’t mean the runoff election will have a higher voter turnout.
The runoff election pits Mayor Rahm Emanuel against Cook County Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia. There are 18 wards with aldermanic races.
The new record for the first day of early voting in a city election tops the 5,522 ballots cast on the first day of early voting in the Feb. 24 election, according to the city’s election data.
The new record wallops the 831 ballots counted on the first day of early voting ahead of the February 2007 municipal election, the first city election with the option of early voting.
Typically, the best day of early voting occurs on the last day, Allen said. For example, 21,539 ballots were cast on the last day of early voting for the election last month. The single all-time record for one day of early voting was in November 2008, when roughly 35,000 ballots were counted.
Early voting continues through April 4 at 51 sites.
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