COVID-19 affects March 17 Primary Election

Independence Village of Peoria, St. Sharbel Apartments, and Lutheran Hillside Village have notified the Peoria County Election Commission that they are unable to polling places for the March 17, 2020, primary election. This decision is made due to the concerns of the well-being of the people especially the elderly residents regarding the risks of influenza and potentially COVID-19.

The affected voters will be notified of their new polling place through email. People can still vote through the Mail. People who want to use the mail option have to apply for Vote by Mail for the General Primary Election till the 7:00 p.m. Thursday, March 12 deadline. All ballots received postmarked on or before March 17 will be counted.

There is also the option of Early Voting. You can find the dates and times for it on www.peoriaelections.org. Director of the Peoria County Election Commission, Thomas Bride said: “We respect that these facilities are looking after the best interests of their elderly, at-risk population.”

Bride added, “we apologize for any inconvenience these changes may have caused, but we appreciate everyone’s understanding of the current situation.” Precincts PE80, PE83, and PE85 voters will move from Independence Village to ICC Peoria, 5407 N University St. Precinct PE57 voters will move from St. Sharbel Apartments to St. Paul Lutheran Church, 1427 W Lake Ave.

Precincts PE86 and RI03 voters will move from Lutheran Hillside Village to Mossville Methodist Church, 1015 E Mossville Rd. You can contact the Peoria County Election Commission at (309) 324-2300 for any query about precinct changes, Vote by Mail or Early Voting.