Cook County hotlines available to voters with disabilities or language barriers
-
Stickers declare "I voted" in several languages. Daily Herald file photo, 2015
Voters who have disabilities or language barriers can reach out to any of 15 Cook County hotlines for assistance on Election Day.
The Cook County clerk's office provides voting assistance via the hotlines in Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Tagalog, Polish, Russian, Ukranian, Gujarati, Urdu and Arabic, as well as in English.
Voters who have disabilities also can get help via a hotline, and there is a TDD hotline for hearing or speech impaired voters.
Touch screen voting machines are equipped with ballots in the same languages. Audio ballots are available, as well. The clerk's office assigns bilingual election judges to many precincts.
Cook County has prioritized language access after the county board in 2019 passed the Voting Opportunity and Translation Equity (VOTE) ordinance to expand translated ballots and voting materials.
One-third of Cook County residents speak a language other than English in their homes, according to the county.
The voter or an election judge can seek assistance at these hotlines:
Spanish: (312) 603-6767
Chinese (Mandarin): (312) 603-6769
Polish: (312) 603-6770
Hindi: (312) 603-6743
Tagalog: (312) 603-6742
Korean: (312) 603-6745
Russian: (312) 603-6751
Ukrainian: (312) 603-6752
Gujarati: (312) 603-6746
Urdu: (312) 603-6748
Arabic: (312) 603-6747
TDD: (312) 603-0902
Voters with disabilities: (312) 603-0944
English speaking voters needing assistance can call (312) 603-0906. An additional hotline to report election fraud and irregularities is at (312) 603-0236.
|