Welcome to The City That Votes, a podcast series from the Chicago Board of Elections taking you behind the polling place curtain for a look and listen at how our election system works in the Windy City.
Episode 15: Farewell to Commissioner William Kresse
This episode, we speak with and say goodbye to Commissioner William Kresse, a legend at the Chicago Board of Elections. Since joining the Board in 2015, he has been a tireless champion for accuracy and transparency, and his dedication to upholding the integrity of our elections has been a cornerstone of Chicago’s electoral process for more than a decade. During his tenure, Kresse has overseen 17 elections and been an essential voice on the Chicago Electoral Board - we thank you for your service!
28 Jul 2025
Episode Fourteen: Petitions FAQ for the 2026 March Primary
In Chicago, a familiar political season is approaching. Starting August 5th, candidates for elected office will begin circulating nominating petitions to appear on the upcoming March 17, 2026 Primary Election ballot. Whether you’re catching the train or grabbing your groceries, it’s a common sight to see these candidates and their volunteers asking for your signature on their nominating petitions. But what does your signature mean? And what happens to the candidate after you sign? This episode, we discuss the ins and outs of this petition process with the Board’s General Counsel Adam Lasker, including circulation, filing, and an overview of the objection process.
23 Jan 2024
Episode Thirteen (In Hindi): Bilingual Election Judges
This Hindi Podcast from Chicago Board of Elections, hosted by Kimico Mehta, discusses the need for bilingual election judges for the March 19, 2024 Primary Election. Can you speak Hindi, Gujarati, or Urdu? Sign up today at pollworker.chicagoelections.gov!
किमिको मेहता की मेज़बानी में, शिकागो चुनाव आयुक्त परिषद का यह हिंदी पॉडकास्ट, 19 मार्च, 2024 के प्राथमिक चुनाव के लिए द्विभाषी चुनाव न्यायाधीशों की आवश्यकता पर चर्चा करता है। क्या आप हिंदी, गुजराती या उर्दू बोल सकते हैं? pollworker.chicagoelections.gov पर आज ही जाएँ!
19 Sept 2023
Episode Twelve: We're Hiring!
On this episode, we speak with staff at our Job Fair held at the downtown Supersite this last Friday. The Board is looking for part-time employees and poll workers ahead of the 2024 Presidential Elections, including Early Voting Officials, Registration Staff, Remote Site Supervisors, Warehouse Workers, and Election Judges and Coordinators. Part-Time Employees begin at $17 per hour and work no more than 30 hours per week. New Election Judges make up to $230 for Election Day and Election Coordinators make up to $450. Go to ChicagoElections.Gov to learn more.
13 Feb 2023
Episode Eleven: The New Police District Councils
As voters head to the polls for the upcoming February 28th Municipal Election in Chicago, for the first time in over 110 years, they are voting on a whole new office on the ballot: Police District Councils. Created out a new ordinance passed by the Chicago City Council in 2021, voters will choose three candidates in each of the 22 Police Districts to work with the newly created Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA). We speak with Reverend Damon Smith, the Deputy Director of District Councils for the CCPSA, to talk more about this new office and what voters should expect heading into February 28th.
18 Nov 2022
Episode Ten: Petition Filing for the 2023 Municipal Election
As we wrap up counting and certifying all of the votes for the most recent November 8th General Election, we are already looking ahead to the NEXT election. It’s almost that time where candidates line up early to file their petitions to get on the ballot for the February 28, 2023 Municipal Election. This petition filing period will run from Monday, November 21 through Monday, November 28, with a day off for Thanksgiving. All petition filing will also take place at 191 N. Clark, the Board’s Supersite in downtown Chicago at Clark and Lake. This episode, we again are joined by the Board’s General Counsel Adam Lasker to give us a brief overview on the ins and outs of this petition filing process, as well as the next step: filing objections to those candidate petitions.
24 Oct 2022
Episode Nine (In Hindi): Vote By Mail
This Hindi Podcast from Chicago Board of Elections, hosted by Kimico Mehta, discusses the various options that voters have to cast their votes for the upcoming Nov 8 General Elections. The episode requests the voters to consider the option of ‘Vote by Mail’ if it is not possible for them to visit our supersite, any of the early voting sites or their home precincts to cast their vote on Election Day on Tuesday, Nov 8, 2022. Our guest speaker is Mr. Rakesh Malhotra, President of Federation of Indian Associations.
किमिको मेहता द्वारा आयोजित, शिकागो चुनाव परिषद से यह हिंदी पॉडकास्ट, आने वाले 8 नवंबर के आम चुनाव के लिए, मतदान करने के विभिन्न विकल्पों की चर्चा करता है। यह एपिसोड, मतदाताओं से अनुरोध करता है कि वे 'डाक द्वारा मतदान' करने के विकल्प पर विचार करें, खासकर यदि उनके लिए मतदान करने- हमारी सुपरसाइट पर, या हमारे किसी भी समयपूर्व मतदान स्थल पर, या मंगलवार 8 नवंबर, 2022 को, मतदान के दिन, अपने क्षेत्र में जाना संभव नहीं हो। हमारे अतिथि वक्ता श्री राकेश मल्होत्रा, फेडरेशन ऑफ इंडियन एसोसिएशन के अध्यक्ष हैं।
19 Oct 2022
Episode Eight: Has Your Polling Place Changed?
This episode, we are discussing a very important message ahead of the November 8th General Election – Has Your Polling Place Changed? Due to the recent once-in-a-decade redistricting process in Chicago, you may have a new precinct polling place for Election Day on November 8th. I speak with Chris Turner, Assistant Supervisor of our Polling Places Department, about how voters can find their assigned precinct polling place ahead of November 8th, as well as polling place accessibility across Chicago. To check your voter information, go to: https://chicagoelections.gov/en/your-voter-information.html
15 Aug 2022
Episode Seven (In Hindi): India's Independence Day 2022
This is the first episode in Hindi of The City That Votes podcast, hosted by Kimico Mehta. This episode celebrates India's Independence Day 2022, discusses the right to vote - a sacred Constitutional right of every citizen in a democracy - and shares information ahead of the November 8, 2022 General Election. Mr. Amit Kumar, the Consul General of India, Chicago, is our guest speaker.
किमिको मेहता की मेज़बानी में- ‘द सिटी दैट वोट्स’ के हिंदी पॉडकास्ट का यह पहला एपिसोड जो 2022 का भारतीय स्वतंत्रता दिवस मनाता है, मतदान के अधिकार पर चर्चा करता है जो कि लोकतंत्र में हर नागरिक का एक पवित्र संवैधानिक अधिकार है - और 8 नवंबर, 2022 को होने वाले आम चुनाव की जानकारी साझा करता है। हमारे अतिथि वक्ता हैं- भारत के कौंसल जनरल, शिकागो - श्री अमित कुमार।
3 Jun 2022
Episode Six: Early Voting & Vote By Mail
This episode, we discuss how you - as a voter in Chicago - can vote ahead of Election Day in the June 28th Primary Election. Early Voting is now open at the Chicago Board of Elections Supersite at 191 N. Clark through Election Day, with all 50 Ward Early Voting sites opening on June 13th. Vote By Mail applications are open until June 23rd. To discuss all the ways you can vote, I speak with Clint Hurde, Manager of the Pre-Election Voting and Logistics division at the Board of Elections, and Alexandria Boutros from Chicago Votes about their "Parade to the Polls" series for first-time high school voters.
14 Apr 2022
Episode Five: Chicago Electoral Board Update
This episode, we are going to discuss one of the Board of Commissioners’ most important duties – serving as the Chicago Electoral Board, which hears and decides on objections to a candidate’s nomination petitions to get onto the ballot in the City of Chicago. As the Chicago Electoral Board is currently meeting to hear cases ahead of the June 28th Primary, I speak with our General Counsel Adam Lasker to give us an update and brief overview on the process.
28 Feb 2022
Episode Four: Our New Commissioner June A. Brown
We are very pleased to introduce you to our new Commissioner at the Chicago Board of Elections, June A. Brown. Commissioner Brown grew up in Alabama and her work in voters' rights was informed by her exposure to the inspirational leadership of the civil rights movement of the 1960s. On this episode, we discuss her life and her decades-long commitment to public service and voting rights.
21 Dec 2021
Episode Three: Remapping Chicago
This episode is dedicated to that great decennial hot topic: the City of Chicago’s remapping process. Every ten years, legislators redraw the lines and many voters end up in different districts, wards, and precincts. For the first time since 1992, the Chicago City Council did not come to an immediate agreement on a new ward map before the December 1, 2021 deadline. So what does this mean for Chicago’s voters? I speak with our Executive Director Charles Holiday Jr. and Al Chase, Supervisor of Software Development and our in-house redistricting specialist.
10 Nov 2021
Episode Two: The History of the Board
You may have noticed that Chicago's election system is set up a bit different than other places across the country. The Board is purposely separate from Chicago’s City Hall, and separate from Cook County government as well. For our second episode, we sit down with our current two Commissioners - Chairwoman Marisel Hernandez & Secretary William Kresse - to discuss their experience and the history of how the Chicago Board of Elections came about in the first place.
20 Oct 2021
Episode One: You Be The Judge
Welcome to The City That Votes, a new series from the Chicago Board of Elections taking you behind the polling place curtain for a look and listen at how our election system works in the Windy City. Our first guest is Audra Lewicki, Community Services Manager, who oversees the division responsible for hiring and training our city’s elections judges & coordinators, the people who check you into the poll book and process your ballot.
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