WHAT WE DO
In most parts of the United States and Illinois, elections are run by county clerks and secretaries of state. Those officials are usually politicians nominated in political party primaries and elected in partisan elections. They often remain active members of their political party because they are subject to re-election at the end of their terms of office, usually every four years. Therefore, they tend to remain subject to political influences throughout their terms and they are often in charge of administering elections in which their own names appear on the ballot as partisan candidates for re-election.
Under the Illinois Election Code, residents of municipalities and counties can choose to insulate their elections from outside political influences by establishing an election commission. When an election commission is formed—usually by a referendum voted on by the city’s or county’s electors—direct control of elections is transferred from the partisan county clerk to an independent board of election commissioners.
The members of a board of election commissioners created by referendum are appointed by the judges of the circuit court for the county in which the commission is located. Since the election commissioners answer to the judicial branch of government, they are independent of and insulated from the partisan elected officials in the legislative and executive branches of government. Their efforts remain focused on the professional administration of voter registration and public elections. Although incumbent election commissioners are subject to re-appointment by their county judges, they never have to seek nomination in a political party primary nor seek re-election in a partisan election. No commissioner can hold any other political office while serving on an election commission.
Insulation from political influences helps foster transparency and can result in higher voter confidence in the accuracy and integrity of their elections. There is no clear evidence that elections run by partisan county clerks are less expensive than those run by independent election commissions, so there is no substantial extra cost for the additional integrity an election commission can provide. With staggered terms of office for its several members, an election commission can also bring more stability and consistency to elections than a partisan county clerk, since a different politician may be elected county clerk as often as every four years.