Time's up: Candidates prepare to submit petitions to qualify for pandemic-delayed primaries

Most candidates already have the job completed, but don't be surprised if you find one at your door this week as campaigns make a last-ditch effort to gather enough signatures to qualify for a spot on the June 28 primary ballot.

This year, voters will be selecting candidates for state constitutional offices, state House and Senate seat, congressional seats and various county offices and judgeships.

Candidates, including incumbents, are required to submit signatures from eligible voters living within the boundaries of the area they seek to represent.

The Illinois primary is usually held in March, but because of a delay in the release of U.S. census data plus court challenges to the Democratic-led redistricting maps, the voting was moved to June 28. That also led to the period for collecting petitions and the number of signatures required to be reduced by one-third due.

Elizabeth Austin, a longtime Democratic campaign staff member and consultant from Oak Park, said the shift in the calendar brought particular challenges to collecting signatures.

"We used to gather signatures when it was not below freezing, and of course when people were not concerned about catching or transmitting a potentially deadly illness," Austin said.

In previous years, petition season began in the fall prior to the election, but this year meant campaign staff knocked on doors with likely snow on the ground and omicron-variant COVID-19 cases surging across the state.

James Zay, DuPage County Republican chairman, praised precinct committee workers, who he said have been up for the challenge, collecting signatures surpassing the minimum requirements.

It's not unlikely for a candidate's petitions to be challenged by their opponents in competitive races, thus making it essential to gather enough signatures to cover any potential eliminations.

While candidates have from March 7 through the 14th to submit their petitions, filing on Monday offers an advantage because it puts contenders in a lottery for the coveted top position on the ballot.

Zay said in competitive races, you're likely to see candidates lined up before 8 a.m. to enter the lottery. County election candidates file with their local election board, and contenders for the General Assembly or statewide positions file with the Illinois State Election Board.

Another hurdle this election season is navigating the new 2020 redistricting map as potential voters figure out where they lie and campaigns adjust their efforts under the new political boundaries. Jack Cunningham, a Republican who for 20 years has served as Kane County Clerk, said his staff has worked hard to adapt the new maps into their systems to ensure the county's more than 300,000 registered voters head to the correct precinct on Election Day.

"We get the job done, but it's been extremely challenging," Cunningham said.

With the petition filing period opening on Monday, Cunningham said he's most concerned for how the maps have affected precinct boundaries. He advises committee workers to verify they are running for the correct precinct since the new maps have redrawn precincts and in some instances have combined two or three smaller districts into one unit.

The start of petition filing is not the first day of the campaign season, but it does give a peek into the strength of a campaign operation and the seriousness of a candidate.

"This is the first big challenge for a campaign - getting on the ballot," Austin said. "It doesn't mean you are going to win, but if you don't get on the ballot, you are not going to win."