Article 29

Prohibitions and Penalties

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10 ILCS 5/29-1 — Vote Buying

Any person who knowingly gives, lends or promises to give or lend any money or other valuable consideration to any other person to influence such other person to vote or to register to vote or to influence such other person to vote for or against any candidate or public question to be voted upon at any election shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-2 — Promise for Vote

Any person who, in order to influence any other person to vote or register to vote or to vote for or against any candidate or public question to be voted upon at any election, knowingly promises to

shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-3 — Vote Selling

Any person who votes for or against any candidate or public question in consideration of any gift or loan of money or for any other valuable consideration, or for any promise to cause or support the employment or appointment of any person to any public office or public position, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-4 — Preventing From Voting

Any person who, by force, intimidation, threat, deception or forgery, knowingly prevents any other person from

shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-5 — Voting More Than Once

Any person who, having voted once, knowingly during any election where the ballot or machine lists any of the same candidates and issues listed on the ballot or machine previously used for voting by that person,

however, if a person has delivered a ballot or ballots to an election authority as a vote by mail voter and due to a change of circumstances is able to and does vote in the precinct of his residence on election day, shall not be deemed to be in violation of this Code./p>

10 ILCS 5/29-6 — Mutilation of Election Materials

Any person who knowingly destroys, mutilates, defaces, falsifies, forges, conceals or removes any record, register of voters, affidavit, return or statement of votes, certificate, tally sheet, ballot, or any other document or computer program which

shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony and shall also be ineligible for public employment for a period of 5 years immediately following the completion of his or her sentence.

10 ILCS 5/29-7 — Tampering With Voting Machines

Any person who tampers with any machine or device used in connection with voting or the counting of votes, or who knowingly allows another to tamper with such a machine or device, so as

shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-8 — Stuffing the Ballot Box

Any person who, prior to, during, or after the counting of ballots or prior to, during, or after the final certification of the vote of any election, knowingly

shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-9 — Unlawful Observation of Voting

Except as permitted by this Code, any person who knowingly marks his ballot or casts his vote on a voting machine or voting device so that it can be observed by another person, and any person who knowingly observes another person lawfully marking a ballot or lawfully casting his vote on a voting machine or voting device, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony.

10 ILCS 5/29-10 — Perjury

For the purpose of this subsection, "public employment" shall mean any elected or appointed office created by the Constitution or laws of this State, or any ordinance of a unit of local government. "Public employment" shall also include any position as an employee of the State of Illinois, or a unit of local government or school district.

10 ILCS 5/29-11 — Failure to Comply with Order of Election Authority

Any person who knowingly fails or refuses to comply with any lawful order of an election authority issued by the election authority in the performance of the duties of the election authority, shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

10 ILCS 5/29-12 — Disregard of Election Code

Except with respect to Article 9 of this Code, any person who knowingly

shall, unless a different punishment is prescribed by this Code, be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

10 ILCS 5/29-13 — Solicitation & Conspiracy

Each violation of this Code shall be an offense within the meaning of Section 2-12 of the Illinois Criminal Code of 2012, so that the inchoate offenses of solicitation, conspiracy and attempt, and the punishment therefor, as provided in such Criminal Code shall apply to solicitation, conspiracy and attempt to violate the provisions of this Code.

10 ILCS 5/29-14 (Repealed)

10 ILCS 5/29-15 — Conviction Deemed Infamous

Any person convicted of an infamous crime as such term is defined in Section 124-1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, as amended, shall thereafter be prohibited from holding any office of honor, trust, or profit, unless such person is again restored to such rights by the terms of a pardon for the offense, has received a restoration of rights by the Governor, or otherwise according to law. Any time after a judgment of conviction is rendered, a person convicted of an infamous crime may petition the Governor for a restoration of rights.

The changes made to this Section by this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly are declarative of existing law.

10 ILCS 5/29-16 — Contempt & Removal from Office

Such punishment for contempt and removal from office shall not bar prosecution and punishment for any criminal offense committed.

10 ILCS 5/29-17 — Liability for Deprivation of Constitutional Rights

Any person who subjects, or causes to be subjected, a citizen of the State of Illinois or other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States or of the State of Illinois, relating to registration to vote, the conduct of elections, voting, or the nomination or election of candidates for public or political party office, shall be liable to the party injured or any person affected, in any action or proceeding for redress.

10 ILCS 5/29-18 — Liability for Conspiracy to Prevent Vote

If 2 or more persons conspire to prevent by force, intimidation, threat, deception, forgery or bribery any person from registering to vote, or preventing any person lawfully entitled to vote from voting, or preventing any person from supporting or opposing, in a legal manner, the nomination or election of any person for public or political party office, or a proposition voted upon at any election, or to injure any person or such person's property on account of such vote, support or advocacy, and if one or more persons so conspiring do, attempt or cause to be done, any act in furtherance of the object of such conspiracy, whereby another is injured in his person or property or deprived of having or exercising any right, privilege or immunity secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States or the State of Illinois relating to the conduct of elections, voting, or the nomination or election of candidates for public or political party office, all persons engaged in such conspiracy shall be liable to the party injured or any person affected, in any action or proceeding for redress.

10 ILCS 5/29-19 — Liability for Giving False Information

Whoever knowingly or willfully gives false information as to his name, address, or period of residence in the voting district for the purpose of establishing his eligibility to register to vote, or conspires with another individual for the purpose of encouraging his false registration to vote or illegal voting, or pays or offers to pay or accepts payment either for registration to vote or for voting shall be liable to the party injured or any other person affected, in an action or proceeding for redress.

10 ILCS 5/29-20 — Vote by Mail Ballots - Violations

A person is guilty of a Class 3 felony who knowingly:

How To Use This Guide.

This is a guide to the Illinois Compiled Statutes Election Code (ILCS) as it regards to poll watchers. Not all election code statutes are included.

This guide is not intended to be a comprehensive guide to Illinois election law; it includes only those sections which are of interest to poll watchers.

The election code is copied verbatim from the ILCS website. There are no changes to the wording of the statutes, but formatting decisions were made which include:

Each page will include when the page was last updated & a link to the original ILCS website for that statute.

This guide will be maintained through the 2024 election cycle. Maintenance of this guide will end on Election Day, November 5, 2024.

Every effort has been made to keep the information up to date.