Dupage Policy Journal

Following the Nov. 5 election, former Winfield trustee Angel Oakley is speaking out about ongoing issues with Illinois’ election process, stressing the importance of improving public trust and accountability in the system. 

Oakley, who witnessed several technical and procedural issues during the 2024 general election, expressed her concerns about the difficulties voters faced in DuPage County. She noted instances where machines were temporarily down and ballots were rejected due to technical glitches.

“During the 2024 general election, I was aware that several counties in Illinois were experiencing problems during early voting,” Oakley told the DuPage Policy Journal. “Reports were coming in that machines were temporarily down. Voters were told ballots were being collected and would be scanned when the machines were operational. Some voters expressed skepticism about leaving their ballots unscanned.”

At the DuPage County Fairgrounds polling location, Oakley observed firsthand some of the frustrations voters encountered when their ballots were rejected due to what was described as “too many answers.”

“I saw a few people experience ballot rejection due to ‘too many answers,’” Oakley said. “The volunteer explained that ballots are rejected when multiple answers are provided per question or position. He said there could be a dot in another box causing a problem. One person went back to get a new ballot to start over, another went back to the booth to review her ballot, and another just tried submitting a second time and it was accepted.”

While Oakley, who ran an unsuccessful write-in campaign as an independent candidate for Illinois' 3rd Congressional District, emphasized that she did not witness anything “nefarious” during the election, she expressed concern that persistent technological problems erode public confidence in the electoral process.

“Technology is not going to be perfect, so we are likely to experience issues from time to time. The core of the issue is trust,” Oakley said. “People need to feel like the system is trustworthy.”

Oakley also reflected on a serious issue she observed during the 2022 election when she saw drop-off ballots being processed without signature validation at the DuPage County building.

"In the 2022 election, I witnessed drop-off ballots getting processed without signature validation. This happened at the DuPage County building the day after the election," she said. "There was a lawsuit and they were found to be negligent, however, it's too late at that point to undo any potential damage. There are areas of our election process that need to be tightened up so that people can have greater confidence in the results."

Oakley is not standing idle in the face of these election challenges. She shared that she is actively working with a group to establish a citizens’ assembly in Illinois aimed at tackling much-needed reforms to the state’s election system.

"I'm working with a group to catalyze a citizens' assembly in Illinois this coming year, perhaps, they can tackle some necessary reforms," Oakley said.

Her comments come as Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons faces significant criticism after voting system malfunctions in the county led to delays and voter frustration during the 2024 election.

State Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Macon) described Ammons as “totally incompetent and probably corrupt,” citing a history of similar problems in the county and raising concerns about the integrity of the election process.

Ammons' office faced challenges in managing Election Day disruptions in 2024, with voters unable to cast ballots for part of the day due to malfunctioning systems. Caulkins highlighted a pattern of issues in the county, referencing past claims of a hacked system and issues with voter roll management.

Caulkins argued that Ammons' failure to resolve these recurring issues undermines voter confidence, accusing him of neglecting systemic problems in the office and calling for his removal.

Ammons, who has previously faced controversy due to a past felony conviction and a subsequent pardon facilitated by his wife, State Rep. Carol Ammons (D-Urbana), apologized for the Election Day disruptions. However, Caulkins emphasized that the repeated failures reflected deeper leadership problems.

“This is what happens when you vote for a party and not the most qualified person,” he told the Chambana Sun. “This is on the voters in Champaign County. You get what you vote for. You vote for someone just because they have a D behind their name and not based on qualifications.”

Election Day voting shutdowns were also reported in Sangamon County and at least one precinct in Chicago. 

In DuPage County, the 2024 general election results showed a strong Democratic turnout. Incumbent State’s Attorney Bob Berlin was the only countywide Republican to win a race, though he was unopposed.

In the race for Circuit Court Clerk, Democrat Candice Adams narrowly defeated Republican Jeremy Wang, earning 231,119 votes (53.4%) to Wang’s 201,791 votes (46.6%).

Democrat Judith Lukas won a tight race for County Coroner, securing 216,901 votes (50.6%) to Republican Richard Jorgensen’s 211,513 votes (49.4%).

In the race for County Auditor, Democrat William White edged out Republican Bob Grogan with 216,600 votes (50.3%) to Grogan’s 213,885 votes (49.7%).

For Recorder of Deeds, Democrat Liz Chaplin defeated Republican Nicole Prater with 226,408 votes (51.8%) to Prater’s 210,838 votes (48.2%).

Statewide, Illinois Democrats maintained their veto-proof majorities in both the state House and Senate, despite a broader Republican wave across the country. Democrats held 40 Senate seats to the GOP’s 19 and 78 House seats to Republicans’ 40, retaining significant legislative control that allows them to override vetoes and pass urgent legislation with ease.