Election Log: Woodridge Polling Places See 5 to 10 Percent of Voters By Day's End

Welcome to the Woodridge Patch 2011 Election Log, our main hub for all things election. For more information on individual candidates and races, see our 2011 Election Central.

Bookmark the link, check in and offer comments. If you know of any election news, want to submit an endorsement or have any questions or suggestions, e-mail melissat@patch.com.

Tuesday, April 5, 7:15 p.m.

The polls have now closed for the April consolidated election, and voter turnout was much lower than expected, according to election judges at polling places in Woodridge.

polling place only saw 5 percent of the voters registered to vote there, with 102 voters out of the 2,160 registered placing their ballots as of 6:40 p.m.

At the , about 9 percent of voters registered to vote there actually placed their ballots, with 148 out of 1,680 registered voting as of 6:20 p.m.

"It's really low," said election judge James Sarantakos.

had a relatively high voter turnout of 10 percent, with 195 voters out of 1,678 as of 6:50 p.m.

Henri Lewin, election judge at Sipley, had said that a regional election representative had told polling places to expect 20 percent of those registered to actually vote.

At , 6 percent of registered voters actually turned in their ballots, with 82 voters of 1,271 registered voting as of 5 p.m.

Tuesday, April 5, 1 p.m.

As of 12:50 p.m., only 5 percent of registered voters at the polling place at have voted, according to Henri Lewin, election judge. That's 87 people of the 1,681 who have Sipley as their polling place.

"The regional representative told us to expect 20 percent, but I think we're running a little slow," Lewin said. "She said some of the other locations were running even slower. It may pick up, but I really don't think so."

Lewin said for the presidential election, turnout was 57 percent.

Tuesday, April 5, 12:15 p.m.

To give you a little comparison of voter turnout, check out the turnout so far at . Although in Woodridge, voters at this polling place are voting for Darien and Lemont boards.

Voter turnout has been higher than expected, according to election judge Lorianne Juskiewicz.

Almost 200 voters had voted by 12 p.m.

"We're ahead of where we thought we'd be," Juskiewicz said. "It's been steady throughout the day. We had a couple lines bulid up, and that was not because of slow service."

Juskiewicz credited the turnout to the Lemont-Bromberek Combined School District 113A referendum, which asks voters if the district should be authorized to issue $20 million bonds for a working cash fund.

Some Woodridge students go to school in District 113A.

Tuesday, April 5, 9:50 a.m.

Voters are trickling into the voting booths at both and the . As of 9 a.m., 25 voters had voted at the library.

"Our big rush was one guy waiting," said James Sarantakos, election judge at the Woodridge Public Library. "We had nine voting booths and I took half of them down."

Sarantakos said the turnout was typical for this kind of election.

Election judges at Jefferson said that voter turnout was trickling, as well.

"There's usually a big rush when we open and right after work, but when we opened there were just a couple people here," said Karen Honeysett, election judge.

"We had two people at one time," she said. "That was our rush."

Velma Black said she voted at Jefferson because she wanted to support people she knew running for the District 68 and District 99 school boards -- Nancy Kupka (District 99 candidate) and (District 68 candidate). 

"I have good friends running and I wanted to support them," Black said.

Both Honeysett and Sarantakos said they expect voter turnout to peak around 4:30 or 5 p.m.

As of 10 a.m., 25 people had voted at Jefferson.

If you're voting at the library, the polling place is on the second floor. The polling place at Jefferson is in the far back of the school, in the fitness center.

Check in at the polls throughout the day with Woodridge Patch. I'll post an update after the lunch hour and after the expected after-work rush from various polling places around Woodridge.

Tuesday, April 5, 12:35 a.m.

The polls will open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.

Don't forget to bookmark this page for updates, as well as our page, where you can find more information on the April 5 general election, including how to find your polling place and view sample ballots.

Check back throughout the day for information from the polls and Tuesday night for election results.

Monday, April 4, 11:30 a.m.

Election Day is almost upon us!

Woodridge Patch will be keeping a close watch on what's happening at the polls, providing up-to-the-minute coverage of election results. We'll also be updating this blog throughout the day Tuesday.

Don't forget to bookmark this page for updates, as well as our page, where you can find more information on the April 5 general election, including how to find your polling place and view sample ballots.

And keep an eye on Woodridge Patch throughout the day Monday for candidate information on races including Village Board; District 66, 68 and 99 Board of Educations; Woodridge Park District Board; Woodridge Public Library Board and Darien-Woodridge Fire District Board, .

Polls open at 6 a.m. Tuesday and close at 7 p.m.

Wednesday, March 30, 2:45 p.m.

According to Doreen Nelson, assistant executive director at the DuPage County Election Commission, 65 people have voted early so far in Woodridge.

That's fewer people than the village had in 2009, when 86 people came out to vote early. Early voting ends Thursday, March 31.

Here are the closest early voting sites and their hours:

Remember these early voting locations and times:

• Downers Grove Village Hall, 801 Burlington Ave. in Downers Grove in the committee room; Mon, Wed., Thu., Fri. 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Lisle Village Hall, 925 Burlington Ave. in Lisle in the business office foyer; Tue. to Fri. 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Naperville Municipal Center, 400 S. Eagle St. in Naperville in meeting room A, Mon. through Fri. 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Monday, March 28, 5 p.m.

WCTV Channel 6 is now airing footage from the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for District 68. You can watch the forum at 9 a.m., 2 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Sunday, March 27, 8:15 p.m.

In the second phase of our election coverage, we sent each candidate for the contested District 68 School Board and Village of Woodridge Board of Trustees a more issue-based questionnaire. We posted the answers to the combined 12 questions last week. Here's a roundup to all of the questions posted:

VILLAGE OF WOODRIDGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

DISTRICT 68 SCHOOL BOARD

• Election 2011: District 68 Election Candidates on Needed Changes in the District

Sunday, March 27, 2 p.m.

The transcript from District 99's candidate forum has been posted, care of Downers Grove Patch:

Saturday, March 26, 2 p.m.

We have the transcripts posted from two District 68 candidate forums.

Friday, March 18, 5 p.m.

The Woodridge Education Association is holding a candidate forum for the candidates of the District 68 School Board. The forum will be held at in the Learning Resource Center on Wednesday, March 23 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Each candidate will give a short talk and explain what they are hoping to do if elected.

Remember these early voting locations and times:

• Downers Grove Village Hall, 801 Burlington Ave. in Downers Grove in the committee room; Mon, Wed., Thu., Fri. 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tue. 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Lisle Village Hall, 925 Burlington Ave. in Lisle in the business office foyer;  Mon. 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Tue. to Fri. 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Naperville Municipal Center, 400 S. Eagle St. in Naperville in meeting room A, Mon. through Fri. 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m. to noon.

You can vote early until March 31.

Tuesday, March 15, 4 p.m.

A District 99 forum will be broadcast on DGTV, overturning a village decision that recording and broadcasting the forum would use staff resources for political campaign activities.

It's a complicated issue, and one that Downers Grove Patch Local Editor Elaine Johnson does a great job delving into , posted Monday.

The decision won't affect Woodridge residents, who don't receive DGTV, but it is an interesting debate affecting a forum for District 99 candidates. The forum, held by the League of Women Voters of Downers Grove, Woodridge and Lisle will take place Wednesday at Village Hall from 7 to 9 p.m.

Here's an excerpt from Johnson's follow-up article, posted Tuesday.

"Mayor Ron Sandack today posted on Twitter that he has received clearance from the Illinois attorney general's office for the village to record and broadcast candidate forums set to be hosted by the League of Women Voters on March 16 and 23.

'Received the clearance letter from the Attorney General this afternoon...will attach it later. It is non-binding, BTW,' Sandack tweeted at 3 p.m.

The Village has posted the attorney general's letter on its website, along with this statement:

'At the request of the Village, the State of Illinois Attorney General has provided a statement regarding the recording and broadcasting of candidate's forums by Village employees. Based on this opinion, the Village will be recording and broadcasting the League of Women Voters Candidate's Forums at no charge.'

Monday, March 14, 8 p.m.

Early voting has begun! There are no early voting locations in Woodridge. Here are the closest voting locations to Woodridge:

• Downers Grove Village Hall, 801 Burlington Ave. in Downers Grove in the committee room; Mon, Wed., Thu., Fri. 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tue. 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Lisle Village Hall, 925 Burlington Ave. in Lisle in the business office foyer;  Mon. 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Tue. to Fri. 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Naperville Municipal Center, 400 S. Eagle St. in Naperville in meeting room A, Mon. through Fri. 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m. to noon.

Look for a full listing of early voting locations by clicking on the election symbol and clicking over to the early voting .pdf.

Tuesday, March 8, 4:45 p.m.

The League of Women Voters of Downers Grove, Woodridge and Lisle will hold a forum for Community High School District 99 candidates on Wednesday, March 16, from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Downers Grove Village Hall, located at 801 Burlington Ave.

This event follows the "Meet the Candidates" event for Downers Grove and Woodridge Area Chamber of Commerce members, which will be held from 5 to 7 p.m.

Monday, March 7, 6:45 p.m.

The League of Women Voters for Downers Grove, Lisle and Woodridge will host a candidate forum on Monday, March 14 featuring the candidates running for the Woodridge School District 68 school board. 

The forum will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Village Hall, 5 Plaza Drive.

For more information, call (630) 271-0254

Monday, March 7, 12 p.m.

The Woodridge Area Chamber of Commerce and the Downers Grove Area Chamber of Commerce are hosting a "Meet the Candidates" business after hours event on Wednesday, March 16 from 5 to 7 p.m. Candidate introductions will begin at 6 p.m.

The event will be held at Celebrity Dance Studio, 2115 63rd Street in Downers Grove.

Chamber members can RSVP by Monday, March 14th via online, e-mail to chamber@woodridgechamber.org, or call 630-960-7080.

This event is for Chamber members.

Candidates running for the District 68 School Board, Woodridge Public Library Board, Woodridge Park District Board and Woodridge Village Trustee Boards have been invited, as well as the District 99 School Board and the College of DuPage School Board.

The Downers Grove Area Chamber of Commerce has also invited candidates running for its library, park district and village boards.

Wednesday, March 2, 12:15 a.m.

Important, election-related dates to keep in mind:

• March 8: Last day to register to vote or transfer registration
• March 9: First day for grace period registration and voting
• March 14: First day for early voting
• March 29: Last day for grade period registration and voting
• March 31: Last day for early voting

For more information, to check your registration status or find out your polling place, visit the DuPage County Election Commision's website and click “Voter Information.”