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Starting today, Illinois voters can cast an early ballot ahead of the 2022 primary elections on June 28. From U.S. senator to Cook County board commissioner, there are races on all levels of government between both parties to keep an eye out for. 

Here’s what to know before heading to the polls. 

Where can I register to vote? 

You can register to vote online or at various locations throughout the city, including the Cook County Clerk’s office, city clerk, driver’s license facility, or through any certified deputy registrar. You can also register to vote at any of the early voting sites. 

What do I need to register to vote? 

You need to present two forms of identification, at least one of which shows your current address. 

When is the deadline for voter registration? 

Illinois voters have until June 12, 2022, to register to vote online before the primary elections. The deadline for in-person registration before the primary election is May 31, 2022. 

Which seats are up for election? 

Many! At the federal level, Illinois voters will choose candidates for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. Statewide, Illinois voters will choose candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, comptroller, treasurer, state senate and state house of representatives. 

In Cook County, voters will choose candidates for board president, board of commissioners, board of review, assessor, sheriff, clerk, treasurer, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District board, and circuit court judges. 

How do I know which districts I’m in? (or who are my current representatives?) 

You can use this lookup tool from the Illinois State Board of Elections website to find which legislative district you’re in. (Judicial subcircuit districts TBD.) 

Who are the candidates? 

A full list of the candidates is available on the Illinois State Board of Elections website. 

There are also nonpartisan voting guides that you can take to the polls with you including the League of Women Voters’s guide and Injustice Watch’s judicial guide. Girl, I Guess also has a progressive voter guide available. 

Where can I early vote? 

Beginning May 26, Chicago voters can cast an early ballot at the Chicago Board of Elections Supersite at 191 N. Clark from Monday through Fridays between 9 AM and 6 PM, Saturdays from 9 AM to 5 PM, and Sundays from 10 AM to 4 PM. 

Early voting  in all 50 wards will start on June 13, 2022. See locations here.

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In 1997, Wilco’s double album Being There became a fundamental pivot for the Chicago band in a decade filled with triumphs. Twenty-five years later, those songs live on in the band’s live shows, even though in the studio Wilco have traveled to a very different place. The evidence lies on Cruel Country, the band’s second double album: in contrast with the raucous energy of Being There, it’s more muted and serious, filled with unadorned folk songs that are as lovely as they are heartbreaking. That’s classic country all right, but not the kind you’ll hear at Carol’s Pub on a Saturday night. Instead, Jeff Tweedy’s often surreal lyrics touch the brokenness of an era defined by standing six feet apart. On “The Universe” he delivers one of his most affecting vocal performances: “So talk to me / I don’t want to hear poetry,” he sings. “Just say it plain / Like how you really speak.” Much of this album feels less concerned with flashy musical chops or studio magic than it is with channeling that kind of intimate yearning. Maybe that’s why the first couple of spins are challenging—not because of any high-art musical vocabulary, but because of the quiet spaces and storytelling. The closest comparison from Wilco’s past is Mermaid Avenue, their 1998 collaborative album with Billy Bragg that set poetry by Woody Guthrie to new music. Postmodern shades of the departed folk singer appear on Cruel Country in the waltz “I Am My Mother” and the psychedelic couplets of “Ambulance.” Tweedy’s acoustic guitar drives the sound throughout, but Pat Sansone and Nels Cline (on electric guitars, lap steel, and Dobro) keep it country, especially on the shuffle “A Lifetime to Find” and the chunky Bakersfield-type rocker “Falling Apart (Right Now).” The majority of these 21 songs were recorded live with few overdubs, which won’t surprise you if you’ve heard their effortless feel and quiet pulse. Don’t expect major band breakaways, only tiny triumphs: you won’t find a finer instrumental than the second half of “Many Worlds,” while at the opposite extreme, “Sad Kind of Way” is perfect baroque pop. The cruelty in Cruel Country is also its comfort: however dark the songs travel, they shed light on relatable truths. On “Hearts Hard to Find,” Tweedy confronts the guilt of feeling nothing “when certain people die,” singing, “My heart’s hard to find / Sometimes.” For the Wilco fan accustomed to the reliable touring unit perfected over many years, from Mexico to Massachusetts, Cruel Country may be your personal prompt to slow down and rediscover your favorite band.

Wilco’s Cruel Country is available through their website.

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In 1997, Wilco’s double album Being There became a fundamental pivot for the Chicago band in a decade filled with triumphs. Twenty-five years later, those songs live on in the band’s live shows, even though in the studio Wilco have traveled to a very different place. The evidence lies on Cruel Country, the band’s second double album: in contrast with the raucous energy of Being There, it’s more muted and serious, filled with unadorned folk songs that are as lovely as they are heartbreaking. That’s classic country all right, but not the kind you’ll hear at Carol’s Pub on a Saturday night. Instead, Jeff Tweedy’s often surreal lyrics touch the brokenness of an era defined by standing six feet apart. On “The Universe” he delivers one of his most affecting vocal performances: “So talk to me / I don’t want to hear poetry,” he sings. “Just say it plain / Like how you really speak.” Much of this album feels less concerned with flashy musical chops or studio magic than it is with channeling that kind of intimate yearning. Maybe that’s why the first couple of spins are challenging—not because of any high-art musical vocabulary, but because of the quiet spaces and storytelling. The closest comparison from Wilco’s past is Mermaid Avenue, their 1998 collaborative album with Billy Bragg that set poetry by Woody Guthrie to new music. Postmodern shades of the departed folk singer appear on Cruel Country in the waltz “I Am My Mother” and the psychedelic couplets of “Ambulance.” Tweedy’s acoustic guitar drives the sound throughout, but Pat Sansone and Nels Cline (on electric guitars, lap steel, and Dobro) keep it country, especially on the shuffle “A Lifetime to Find” and the chunky Bakersfield-type rocker “Falling Apart (Right Now).” The majority of these 21 songs were recorded live with few overdubs, which won’t surprise you if you’ve heard their effortless feel and quiet pulse. Don’t expect major band breakaways, only tiny triumphs: you won’t find a finer instrumental than the second half of “Many Worlds,” while at the opposite extreme, “Sad Kind of Way” is perfect baroque pop. The cruelty in Cruel Country is also its comfort: however dark the songs travel, they shed light on relatable truths. On “Hearts Hard to Find,” Tweedy confronts the guilt of feeling nothing “when certain people die,” singing, “My heart’s hard to find / Sometimes.” For the Wilco fan accustomed to the reliable touring unit perfected over many years, from Mexico to Massachusetts, Cruel Country may be your personal prompt to slow down and rediscover your favorite band.

Wilco’s Cruel Country is available through their website.

Read More

Starting today, Illinois voters can cast an early ballot ahead of the 2022 primary elections on June 28. From U.S. senator to Cook County board commissioner, there are races on all levels of government between both parties to keep an eye out for. 

Here’s what to know before heading to the polls. 

Where can I register to vote? 

You can register to vote online or at various locations throughout the city, including the Cook County Clerk’s office, city clerk, driver’s license facility, or through any certified deputy registrar. You can also register to vote at any of the early voting sites. 

What do I need to register to vote? 

You need to present two forms of identification, at least one of which shows your current address. 

When is the deadline for voter registration? 

Illinois voters have until June 12, 2022, to register to vote online before the primary elections. The deadline for in-person registration before the primary election is May 31, 2022. 

Which seats are up for election? 

Many! At the federal level, Illinois voters will choose candidates for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. Statewide, Illinois voters will choose candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, comptroller, treasurer, state senate and state house of representatives. 

In Cook County, voters will choose candidates for board president, board of commissioners, board of review, assessor, sheriff, clerk, treasurer, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District board, and circuit court judges. 

How do I know which districts I’m in? (or who are my current representatives?) 

You can use this lookup tool from the Illinois State Board of Elections website to find which legislative district you’re in. (Judicial subcircuit districts TBD.) 

Who are the candidates? 

A full list of the candidates is available on the Illinois State Board of Elections website. 

There are also nonpartisan voting guides that you can take to the polls with you including the League of Women Voters’s guide and Injustice Watch’s judicial guide. Girl, I Guess also has a progressive voter guide available. 

Where can I early vote? 

Beginning May 26, Chicago voters can cast an early ballot at the Chicago Board of Elections Supersite at 191 N. Clark from Monday through Fridays between 9 AM and 6 PM, Saturdays from 9 AM to 5 PM, and Sundays from 10 AM to 4 PM. 

Early voting  in all 50 wards will start on June 13, 2022. See locations here.

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