Illinois Near Bottom on Election Integrity

Illinois Near Bottom on Election Integrity

Written by David E. Smith

The Heritage Foundation recently updated its Election Integrity Scorecard, and Illinois did poorly: It ranked 42nd with a score of 38 out of 100. Tennessee and Arkansas topped the list, followed by Alabama at 83, Louisiana at 81, and Florida at 78. Hawaii finished last with a score of 22, while California scored 26.

Heritage says its September update gave additional weight to proof-of-citizenship measures and state bans on foreign funding of ballot measures.

Carol Davis, chair of the Illinois Conservative Union, has worked diligently for a fair and honest election process, was blunt in her assessment:

Illinois’ ranking of 42nd on the Heritage Election Integrity scorecard is abysmal and embarrassing, but Illinois residents certainly won’t be surprised. Our elections have been the laughingstock of the nation for decades. Every aspect of this state is tragically mismanaged by Leftwing ideologues who have long controlled Illinois. Our affiliated national network created the Model Election Laws Handbook to correct the issues covered in the Heritage Scorecard. Good citizens should work with legislators to get Illinois elections on track.

Bob Grogan, chairman of the Illinois Republican Party, noted the culture of denial prevalent in Springfield:

“The famous phrase, ‘Nothing to see here, keep moving,’ is unfortunately alive and well in Democratic-run Illinois voting. That is why the IL GOP is focusing so much time and energy on ballot integrity programs.”

Heritage’s guiding principle is simple: Americans deserve a system that is easy to vote and hard to cheat. A system that protects legitimate ballots and provides transparency is the only way to restore public trust.

However, as Heritage correctly reminds us, strong laws are merely ink on paper if officials refuse to enforce them. A scorecard is only a tool—the real work of holding elected and appointed officials accountable for the integrity of our elections falls to the citizens of this state.

Heritage has announced that its 2027 scorecard will weigh four additional benchmarks: proof-of-citizenship requirements for voting, enforcement and prosecution of election crimes, dedicated state election fraud divisions, and regular compliance audits.