CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The DuPage County Clerk said that by Saturday the number of people who had voted early in-person or by mail had gone over 75 percent of the total vote in 2016.
DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek said more than half of the county’s nearly 649,000 registered voters have already cast ballots in a county that routinely sees turnouts of at least 70 percent in presidential years.
"As of yesterday around noon, we had 328,000 voters," she said, roughly 172,000 in-person and 156,000 by mail.
Kaczmarek said it’s hard to predict what the final turnout percentage might look like given the pandemic and an election that’s projected to have the highest voter turnout.
"I know it will end up in the 70s for sure. Who knows? Maybe it will hit that 80 percent mark," she said.
Kaczmarek said nearly 213,000 people requested mail-in ballots and that more than 39,000 of them have not yet returned their ballots.
"Your voice will not be heard if you leave your ballot on the kitchen counter. Return now, please," she said.
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But, the county clerk advises you not to return the ballot in the U.S. Mail. Kaczmarek said a better option would be to take the ballot to an official drop box. Right now, there are drop boxes in the south parking lot and main entrance to the county Administration Building as well as the 15 early-voting sites. On Tuesday, you can also drop off mail-in ballots at any of the county's 268 polling places.
Of the last five presidential election years, turnout in DuPage County has gone over 76 percent three times. It has gone over 70 percent all five times. County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek speculates it’s possible 80 percent could cast ballots this year. She said "nearly 50,000 voters have registered within the past year."