LIVE UPDATES: Election 2020 In Chicago
CHICAGO (CBS)-- Election Day voting has come to a close, after Chicago and the state of Illinois already had seen record early voting and mail-in ballot numbers. As of Monday night, 3.6 million Illinoisans had voted early – more than 1.8 million in person, and more than 1.7 million by mail.
CBS 2 is providing live updates and election coverage below:
6:25 p.m. Nov. 4
Protesters have surrounded Trump Tower at 401 N. Wabash Ave.
6:10 p.m. Nov. 4
Protesters gathered at Daley Plaza and marched through Loop streets early Wednesday evening. The crowd is concerned that President Trump will try to stop election workers in battleground states from counting the remaining votes.
4:06 p.m. Nov. 4
Republican Jim Oberweis has claimed victory in the 14th Congressional District election. But Democratic Rep. Lauren Underwood has not conceded, and the race has not been called.
3:45 p.m. Nov. 4 CBS NEWS PROJECTS BIDEN WINNER IN MICHIGAN
In Michigan, CBS News is projecting Joe Biden the winner, a lead of roughly 61,000 votes and about 97% of the vote counted. In 2016, President Trump won Michigan by about 10,700 votes. The win in Michigan moves Biden's projected Electoral College total to 253 votes, meaning he could secure the race by also winning Arizona and Nevada, where he's currently considered the likely winner.
Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said earlier Wednesday that the president's reelection campaign has filed a lawsuit in Michigan state court to stop the counting of ballots, citing inadequate access to vote-tallying locations.
3:00 p.m. Nov. 4
Showing his disappointment in the graduated income tax being defeated by Illinois voters on Tuesday, the governor said as a result, cuts will be coming, and "they will be painful."
"As we in Illinois are racking up more bills than we have in revenues. It's unsustainable," Pritzker said, who blamed his predecessor Bruce Rauner for not passing a state budget for two years.
1:30 p.m., Nov. 4 CBS NEWS PROJECTS BIDEN WINNER IN WISCONSIN
In Wisconsin, officials there have counted nearly all of the votes, and Joe Biden holds a razor thin lead over President Trump. CBS News called the race for Biden around 1:30 p.m.. Biden leads Mr. Trump by about 20,500 votes with 99% of precincts reporting. In 2016, the president won the Badger state by a similar margin. The state is critical to both campaigns in the path to 270 electoral votes. The Trump campaign is taking steps to order a recount.
9:30 a.m., Nov. 4
Jim Oberweis remains in a tight race with Democrat Lauren Underwood in the 14th Congressional District. As CBS 2's Tim McNicholas reported, Oberweis said the close race could come down to mail-in ballots and he is "cautiously optimistic."
8:55 a.m., Nov. 4
Mayor Lori Lightfoot is urging patience as ballots continue to be counted in key battleground states, and the race for president still too close to call.
"We wake this morning with little clarity in the presidential race, but with some important known facts. While counting of some ballots in Chicago continues, we know thanks to the collaboration and support of our City's departments and agencies, and the Chicago Board of Elections, a near-historic number of Chicagoans rose to meet this moment in an unprecedented year by casting their ballots, volunteering at polling places, and making their collective voice heard. We have much to be proud of as a city," Lightfoot said in a statement.
"As we anxiously await the outcome of the presidential and other races, I am heartened that our city remains calm and peaceful. This election has generated a lot of emotions on all sides. There will be a lot of chatter until the election results are verified, but it is crucial for us as a city to be focused and diligent to be sure, but also calm and peaceful. Let's channel our emotions into a productive expression of our First Amendment rights. No matter the outcome, we will get through this by remaining together, as neighbors who need each other and love our great city and country."
8:50 a.m., Nov 4
Illinois State Board of Election Officials estimate 300,000 to 400,000 mail-in ballots were still outstanding when polls opened on Election Day, and a spokesman said they are working to determine how many of those still have not arrived as of Wednesday. Officials believe many vote-by-mail ballots were turned in at polling places on Tuesday by people who decided to vote in-person.
However, with so many mail-in ballots still unaccounted for, election officials have warned the results of close races could change in the coming days as those votes are counted. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive with election authorities by Nov. 17 to be counted, so the results of some tight races might remain unknown for a while.
4 a.m. Nov. 4
Incumbent U.S. Rep. Sean Casten won Re-Election over GOP candidate Jeanne Ives and Libertarian candidate Bill Redpath in the 6th Congressional District.
12:20 a.m., Nov 4
Illinois voters decided they did not want approve a constitutional amendment for the controversial proposed graduated income tax.
With 88% of the votes counted, 55% of voters said no to the tax. Around 45% voted for the amendment. There are still outstanding mail-in ballots and the numbers in those ballots may not be known for several days.
Midnight, Nov. 4
Democrats Bobby Rush, Robin Kelly, Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, Mike Quigley, Danny Davis, Jan Schakowsky, Raja Krishnamoorthi, and Bill Foster have all won reelection to U.S. House.
Garcia defeated Republican Jesus Solario with 81 percent of the vote, with 19.33 percent of the precincts reporting.
11:30 p.m., Nov 3
Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx declared victory in her race for re-election Tuesday night, holding a double digit lead over Republican challenger Pat O'Brien nearly four hours after polls closed.
With nearly 95% of precincts reporting, unofficial totals showed Foxx was leading O'Brien 53.05% to 40.35%, with Libertarian Brian Dennehy far behind with 6.6%.
9:45 p.m., Nov 3
According to the Cook County Clerk's Office, so far, 1.06 million ballots have been cast. In 2016, there were 1.08 million ballots cast. This year's number is expected to increase with mail-in ballots. There have been no reports of disturbances or voter intimidation.
"I was wondering where were the lines. I'm always expecting the long lines on Election Day. I even went out to visit but they just weren't there," said Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough.
8 p.m., Nov 3
The group "Refuse Fascism Chicago" gathered and sat on chairs in Federal Plaza to watch videos and election results. There were about 20 people there as of just before 8 p.m., CBS 2's Tara Molina reported.
6:40 p.m., Nov 3
The Wabash Avenue Bridge near Trump Tower will be out of service Tuesday evening as a precautionary safety measure. All other streets, bridges, and Chicago Transit Authority stops downtown remained accessible Tuesday evening, and no other closures are planned.
CBS 2's Marissa Parra reports there is extra-tight security outside Trump Tower.
5:47 p.m., Nov 3
In Chicago, 1,051,529 total ballots have been cast as of 4:30 p.m., equal to a turnout of about 65%. Officials expected the final turnout to top 1.1 million ballots, surpassing 70% turnout.
Tuesday afternoon, a sprinkler went off at the polling place at James Otis School in the West Town neighborhood. The polling place was closed for the rest of the day, and voters were directed to an alternate site at the Goldblatt's Building at 1615 W. Chicago Av. As of about 5 p.m., no ballots had been deemed damaged.
5:40 p.m., Nov 3
In suburban Cook County, just under 1 million votes had been cast as of 4 p.m., equal to about 60 percent turnout. Of those, 409,000 ballots were cast in-person during early voting, 403,000 were mail-in ballots that have been received so far, and 157,000 were in-person votes cast on Election Day.
Election officials received complaints from 10 early voting sites where people were in line before 7 p.m. Monday night, but were not allowed to vote when the sites closed, and were told to come back to vote on Election Day. After investigating, officials said not all 10 sites actually had that issue, though they were unable to specify how many sites actually had that issue.
Overall, a few dozen people who should have been allowed to vote Monday night because they were in line before early voting sites closed were turned away. The county followed up with those voters and made sure they were able to vote on Election Day.
At other early voting sites in the Cook County suburbs, voting went as late as 10 p.m. to accommodate everyone who was in line before 7 p.m.
County officials also said some early voting sites shut down early because social distancing wasn't being enforced, and voters were intimidating election judges.
On Election Day, 17 precincts will stay open until 8 p.m. because there were reports they opened late. Officials said that's a fairly normal number of polling places staying open late compared to previous election years.
4:05 p.m., Nov 3
The city's Office of Emergency Management and Communications is expecting protests that could disrupt traffic in several locations in Chicago this afternoon and evening.
According to OEMC, protest activity is expected at 4 p.m. at Federal Plaza at 230 S. Dearborn St. Other protest activity is expected at 7 p.m. at Millennium Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood, at Union Park at 1501 W. Randolph St., at Wrigley Field, and at Palmer Square Park at 2200 N. Kedzie Av.
3:55 p.m., Nov 3
Chicago Board of Election Commissioners officials said there have been no issues with rejected vote-by-mail ballots so far, and no election judges have been removed from polling places. It's not unheard of for a judge or two to get removed for showing up drunk, or otherwise causing problems.
No polling places will have their voting hours extended today. Normally a handful of precincts in Chicago need to request to stay open beyond 7 p.m., due to delays with opening and voters who lined up early needing to come back later to cast their ballots.
The United Center, which opened as a voting supersite on Tuesday, has had two times more ballots cast than any other site. The second busiest site was the 2nd Ward early voting site.
Chicago is on track for 75% voter turnout.
Voters between ages 25 and 34 have cast the most ballots so far, with approximately 220,000 ballots cast. Voters 35 to 44 have cast 180,000 ballots, voters 55 to 64 have cast 161,000 ballots, and voters 45 to 54 have case 153,000 ballots.
2:15 p.m., Nov 3
Voter Turnout Steady But Decreasing Each Hour
Strong voter turnout Tuesday morning indicates the overall turnout percentage will be in the mid 70s, according to the Chicago Board of Elections.
As of shortly after 2 p.m. Tuesday, 1,002,582 voters had voted, or about 63%.
Voter turnout was steady but descending each hour, the board said. In the first hour, 30,000 voters went to the polls, followed by about 28,600 the second hour. By 2 p.m. the turnout was closer to 20,000 voters.
The biggest voter group by age so far has been 25 to 34-year-olds with 220,000 voters casting ballots. That group was followed by 35 to 40-year-olds with 180,000 voters turning out. Just under 160,000 55 to 65-year-olds turned out, followed by about 152,000 45 to 54-year-olds.
2:05 p.m., Nov 3
Indiana Attorney General Candidate Has COVID
Todd Rokita, the Republican candidate for Indiana Attorney General, has tested positive for COVID-19, according to a news release from his campaign.
Rokita, who grew up in Munster, learned he had been exposed to someone with COVID-19 and has since come down with symptoms. The timing of the exposure and the positive test was not clear. The person was not part of Rokita's campaign.
2 p.m., Nov 3
Lines Moving Quickly At United Center
Lines were moving quickly as music blasted for voters at the United Center super site.
1:15 p.m., Nov 3
Gov. JB Pritzker Addresses Voting Safety
11:15 a.m., Nov 3
Suburban Cook County Voting Update
According to officials, 87,000 voters have cast a ballot today in suburban Cook County. Already, 430,000 mail-in ballots have returned in suburban Cook County.
11 a.m., Nov 3
United Center Voting Update
CBS 2's Mugo Odigwe is live at the United Center where voters are waiting in line at the super site. Over 300,000 votes have been cast in person in Chicago.
10:30 a.m., Nov 3
Chicago Voting Update
Chicago Board of Election representative James Allen said there will be no extensions to polling hours. Voting will end at 7 p.m.
Chicago is currently at a turnout of over 57%. There were 29,517 ballots cast between 6 and 7 a.m. and 27,070 ballots cast by 8 a.m.
Allen said the biggest age group participating is 25 to 34-year-olds with 203,000 ballots cast.
If voter turnout continues similarly to Tuesday morning, Allen said, Chicago could see a voter turnout of over 70%. He said a strong turnout is expected.
There have been scattered reports of ballot scanners that needed to be replaced. Voters can cast ballots if the scanner is not operating. Voting will not be interrupted.
10 a.m., Nov 3
Police Respond To Polling Place Issues
Tuesday morning CPD officers responded to two calls for service at or near polling places.
In the 3200 block of South Calumet a poll worker claimed she was being yelled at by an unknown male, but she did not file a report, police said.
In the 3100 block of West Columbus, a man said his car was near a polling site when offenders in another vehicle got out and started hitting his car with baseball bats. That caller left the site and also did not file a report, police said.
9:40 a.m., Nov 3
Chicago Board Of Elections Provides Updated Numbers
As of 6 p.m. Monday 364,649 people had voted in person at all locations since Oct. 1.
As of 8 p.m. Monday 419,549 vote by mail ballots had been returned.
6:45 a.m., Nov 3
Lines Of Voters Wait Outside United Center
Voters could be seen observing social distancing in long lines outside the United Center super site.
6 a.m., Nov 3
Polls Open
The United Center is open and serving as a super site until 7 p.m. Tuesday.
10 p.m. Nov. 2: Precinct 38 Polling Place Moves
The precinct 38 polling place in Ward 28 has moved to the West Side Learning Center, located at 4624 West Madison.
Also From CBS Chicago:
- Need Help Getting To The Polls Today? Check Out These Transportation Discounts, Poll Locators
- Boards Go Up On Businesses, Police To Be Out In Force Amid Concerns About Civil Unrest Stemming From Election 2020 In Chicago, Nationwide
- Hundreds Of Northwestern Students Protest In Evanston, Clash With Police
