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Municipal elections in Cook County, Illinois (2016)
2018 →
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| 2016 Cook County elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: November 30, 2015 & June 7, 2016 |
| Primary election: March 15, 2016 General election: November 8, 2016 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: County board of review, state's attorney, clerk of the circuit court, county recorder, and special districts |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2016 |
A primary election was held on March 15, 2016. The filing deadline for established political party candidates was November 30, 2015, and the filing deadline for independent candidates was June 7, 2016.[2][3]
Elections
County positions
County board of review
District 1☑ Dan Patlak |
District 2☑ Michael Cabonargi |
Other elected officials
State's attorney☐ Christopher Pfannkuche Defeated in primary
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Clerk of the circuit court☐ Diane Shapiro Defeated in primary |
County recorder☑ Karen Yarbrough |
Special districts
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
Full six-year terms (3 seats)☑ Barbara McGowan Defeated in primary |
Unexpired two-year term (1 seat)☐ Herb Schumann Defeated in primary |
Ballot measures
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of eliminating the Office of the Cook County Recorder of Deeds and transferring its duties to the Office of the Cook County Clerk. |
| A no vote was a vote against eliminating the Office of the Cook County Recorder of Deeds and transferring its duties to the Office of the Cook County Clerk. |
• Earned Sick Time: Cook County 
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of enacting a policy that allows Illinois workers to earn up 40 hours per year of sick time. |
| A no vote was a vote against enacting a policy that allows Illinois workers to earn up 40 hours per year of sick time. |
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of strengthening penalties for the illegal trafficking of firearms and requiring background checks for gun dealers and their employees in Illinois. |
| A no vote was a vote against strengthening penalties for the illegal trafficking of firearms and requiring background checks for gun dealers and their employees in Illinois. |
• School funding measure: Chicago
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of full funding for Chicago Public Schools by the State of Illinois. |
| A no vote was a vote against full funding for Chicago Public Schools by the State of Illinois. |
• Infrastructure investment measure: Chicago
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of collaboration between the city, state, and federal governments in order to prioritize investments in roads, bridges, public transportation, river and lakefront redevelopment, and additional green space. |
| A no vote was a vote against collaboration between the city, state, and federal governments in order to prioritize investments in roads, bridges, public transportation, river and lakefront redevelopment, and additional green space. |
• Retail Sale of Alcohol Ban Continuation: Chicago 
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of continuing the prohibition of the sale at retail of alcoholic liquor in the 26th Precinct of the 17th Ward of the City of Chicago |
| A no vote was a vote against continuing the prohibition of the sale at retail of alcoholic liquor in the 26th Precinct of the 17th Ward of the City of Chicago |
• Affordable Housing Construction: Chicago
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of requiring that at least half of newly constructed residential units cost no more than a third of an average Chicago tenant's income |
| A no vote was a vote against requiring that at least half of newly constructed residential units cost no more than a third of an average Chicago tenant's income |
• Creation of West Side Expanded Mental Health Services Program: Chicago
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of establishing a West Side Expanded Mental Health Services Program, to provide direct free mental health services for any resident of the territory who needs assistance in overcoming or coping with mental or emotional disorders. |
| A no vote was a vote against establishing a West Side Expanded Mental Health Services Program, to provide direct free mental health services for any resident of the territory who needs assistance in overcoming or coping with mental or emotional disorders. |
• Expansion of Charter Schools Measure: Chicago
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of expanding charter schools. |
| A no vote was a vote against expanding charter schools. |
• Freeze of Charter Schools Measure: Chicago
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of freezing the expansion of charter schools. |
| A no vote was a vote against freezing the expansion of charter schools. |
About the county
- See also: Cook County, Illinois
The county government of Cook County is located in Chicago, Illinois. The county was first established in 1831. It covers a total of 946 square miles of land in northeast Illinois. As of 2010, its population was 5,194,675.
County government
- See also: Government of Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is overseen by a 17-member board of commissioners. Each commissioner is elected by district to a four-year term. Residents also elect a three-member board of review, county assessor, state's attorney, county sheriff, clerk of the circuit court, county clerk, county treasurer, and county recorder.
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Cook County, Illinois | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cook County | Illinois | |
| Population | 5,194,675 | 12,830,632 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 944 | 55,512 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 56.7% | 71.5% |
| Black/African American | 23.4% | 14.2% |
| Asian | 7.3% | 5.5% |
| Native American | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% |
| Other (single race) | 9.6% | 5.9% |
| Multiple | 2.7% | 2.6% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 25.3% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 87.1% | 89.2% |
| College graduation rate | 38.8% | 34.7% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $64,660 | $65,886 |
| Persons below poverty level | 14.4% | 12.5% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2010). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2014-2019). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Cook County Illinois election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Cook County, Illinois | Illinois | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
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State of Illinois Springfield (capital) |
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| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
