Changes coming to early voting in Sangamon County

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - Today is the kick off of early voting throughout the state of Illinois. Anyone who is an eligible voter can submit their ballot now through election day. Registered voters can get their ballot sent by mail or in person.

Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray says voters may see some differences this year. The primary change will be with the technology at the voting location.

"We're into a new modernized age of tabulation equipment that is much more hardened and secure," said Gray. "You're you're getting the very best in updated equipment to ensure the accuracy and the integrity of your election."

Gray said his team prioritized accessibility this year. They consulted with several groups as well as disabled voters in the county to purchase better equipment.

"We have invested in updated disability marking devices," said Gray. "So for those that need a little extra help in casting their ballot we've got brand new equipment to do so with all the great bells and whistles to help assist."

The new device has headphones so ballots can be read out loud and braille for those are blind.

Gray expects this election to be record-breaking for the number of people voting by mail.

"We see more and more people enrolling in it, we have at 9000 individuals that are taking part in the partisan primary automatically by mail," said Gray. "And for the general election after this we're already enrolled at 19,000 votes, that's roughly about 15% of our registered voters."

You can register to vote all the way up to election day and even get registered on election day. Election day is March 19. For more information on early voting and online hours, you can look at the Sangamon County Clerk website.