Dupage Policy Journal

State Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) won a temporary restraining order against the DuPage County Clerk's Office for not using proper safeguards in verifying vote-by-mail ballots.

“I am pleased to advise that the DuPage County Circuit Court has issued a Temporary Restraining Order to stop the DuPage County Clerk's Office from improperly using Vote by Mail applications to validate a voter's signature on a Vote by Mail ballot," Mazzochi said in a press release. "This procedure provided literally no security check of integral value."

“The Court rightly recognized that using a Vote by Mail application to qualify signatures on the Vote by Mail ballot itself would be an obvious way to commit ballot fraud, and that restraining the Clerk from following this process immediately will protect the integrity of the election process to the benefit of both candidates.” 

“While the Clerk's improper procedures have already damaged the process, I will continue to fight for ensuring it is one conducted with integrity. Voting by mail cannot work without stringent protections and secure procedures to ensure that a voter's identity is not stolen. The Court's Order will now protect voters for the remainder of this election and tabulation process. It is our hope that the DuPage County Clerk will agree to follow the Court's standards for future elections as well.”

Safe Suburbs USA PAC took to Twitter to question the practice. “So the DuPage Clerk was using the signature on the VBM application to verify the signature on the actual ballot? How ridiculous,” the group said of the revelation.

Election integrity has received significant attention from the Republican Party. Don Tracy, the chair of the Illinois GOP, stated that as the election on Nov. 8 drew near, the matter was the party's top priority.

Carol Davis, chairwoman of the Illinois Conservative Union, participated in initiatives to ensure fair voting in the recent election. 

Davis has asked the public to get more involved in the political process to promote fairness and transparency, claiming that the majority of election issues occur at the local level. 

"It’s not usually a statewide thing," Davis told Prairie State Wire. "You know, a state can have the best election laws in the country. But if the local election authority that’s supposed to implement those laws decides to disregard the law or take shortcuts or just doesn’t know the law, that’s where the elections are going off the rails.”