In 5th Congressional race, Quigley and Hanson at odds over U.S. election security

Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley and Republican challenger Tommy Hanson have vastly different views on the state of the American electoral system.

While Quigley expressed confidence in the process and called voter fraud “vanishingly rare,” Hanson said “no one” believes elections here are secure or fair.

Quigley and Hanson talked about election security and other issues in questionnaires for the Daily Herald. While both candidates live in Chicago, the 5th District includes much of the Northwest suburbs in addition to a chunk of the city.

Quigley, who has represented the district since 2009, said U.S. elections are secure and fair. Keeping them that way, however, “takes sustained effort,” he said.

Quigley said he’s supported funding that helped election agencies replace outdated equipment, strengthen computer security and train poll workers.

He also criticized the Republican-led legislation called the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act that would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register for federal elections and photo IDs at the polls, saying it would make voting more difficult. “Especially for millions of women who changed their names at marriage,” Quigley said.

Quigley also said he’s concerned President Donald Trump’s administration might use the National Guard or U.S. Immigration and Enforcement agents to intimidate voters at polling places.

“I'm working with officials to keep voting sites safe and welcoming,” said Quigley, who also intends to run for Chicago mayor in 2027.

Hanson — a real estate agent who lost to Quigley in the last four general elections and to Rahm Emanuel in 2008 — wants to dramatically change how Americans vote.

Right off the bat, Hanson said Americans should only vote at polling places using paper ballots — and only if they have government-issued IDs with them. Absentee voting should be allowed, he said, but he didn’t say who should qualify for that service.

Additionally, Hanson favored limiting the time frame for early voting.

Hanson also believes no votes — including those cast at polling places or absentee — should be counted once clocks strike midnight on Election Day. Ballots that haven’t been tabulated by then “should be NULL AND VOID,” Hanson emphasized in his questionnaire response.

Americans should believe their votes have been counted “rather than being manipulated, hidden and/or lost through a human and/or computer error,” Hanson wrote.

The 5th District includes parts of Cook and Lake counties. It stretches diagonally between Chicago’s Near North Side neighborhood and the Barrington area.

rlissau@dailyherald.com