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For Election Wonks: Highly-Contested Races, Initiatives To Make Registration And Voting Easier Drive Record-Setting Presidential Primary


Cook County, IL-(ENEWSPF)- A number of high marks in voter participation were set in the March 15, 2016 Presidential Primary election in suburban Cook County, according to a Post-Election Report for Suburban Cook County released today by Cook County Clerk David Orr.

The election featured strong contests up and down the ballot, and was aided by initiatives to make registration and voting easier, set many records, including; the number of registered voters for a presidential primary, presidential primary election Early Voting, mail ballots cast for a primary election, and total number of pre-election day ballots cast for a presidential primary.

Full election results, with charts and maps illustrating election trends, are in the Post-Election Report at cookcountyclerk.com. A PDF of the report can be downloaded here.

“The information and data in the report reveal many interesting trends among voters and offer a great perspective on how Cook County voted,” Orr said.

“People have shown that they want to take part in the electoral process,” Orr said. “If they have the tools, the information, and the access to the vote, they will take full advantage of the opportunity to register and vote.”

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Some highlights from the report include:

  • Donald Trump received more votes than the other Republican presidential candidates in 25 of suburban Cook County’s 30 townships. John Kasich garnered the most votes in the other five townships, though overall, he got just 2,871 votes more than Ted Cruz.
  • In terms of townships, Hillary Clinton got more votes in just two more townships than Bernie Sanders (16 to 14), but Clinton’s margins of victory were much larger than Sanders’ giving her a 54 percent to 46 percent edge in votes countywide.
  • Turnout among 17-year-olds, who for the first time in a presidential primary were able to register and vote if they turn 18 by the November General Election, was higher (62 percent) than for the rest of the population (49 percent).
  • While incumbent State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez and challenger Kim Foxx each received the most votes in 15 suburban townships, Foxx had higher margins of victory, resulting in 52 percent of the vote for her, in contrast to Alvarez’s 33 percent.
  • About 80 percent of voters who requested a mail ballot did so online.
  • In the 90 days leading up to Election Day, more than 21,000 eligible suburban Cook County residents registered to vote online.

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