Election Protection volunteer Danilo Herrera, a new citizen, voted for the first time in this election.

During yesterday's election, around 300 dedicated volunteers answered the phones and stood ready to help voters in person who encountered problems casting their ballots.

Starting at 4:30am and going through late evening, we received a record-breaking 1,500 calls from voters in Illinois and Indiana. From questions about voter registration to broken voting equipment, our non-partisan Election Protection volunteers assisted voters of all stripes to make their voices heard.

Together, we protected our country's precious democracy.

Voters called us with a range of problems yesterday.

We heard from dozens of homebound and quarantined voters, some who tested positive for COVID on Election Day, who were deprived of a way to safely access and turn in their ballot.

In Illinois, many polling places opened late, with delays as long as two hours in some places. After our advocates called election officials, a court order secured extra voting time at those polling places.

One of the most serious issues occurred Monday night, as over a dozen suburban Cook County early voting sites turned away voters who were in line by the 7pm closing time. We received around 70 calls from people who told us they waited for hours in the cold to vote, only to be dispersed by law enforcement and with little explanation. You can read more about that incident here.

Voter intimidation, tech issues, election judge misconduct, and lack of signage all made for a bumpy experience for many voters yesterday. Indiana voters faced extraordinary barriers, with one of the earliest poll closing times and mail ballot receipt deadlines in the country.

But there were many victories for voter access as well.

Our volunteers worked long hours to protect voting rights.

When a polling place that ran out of ballots near closing time in Woodford County, IL sent voters to another location, we secured an agreement from election officials that late-arriving voters there would be able to cast their ballots.

In DuPage County, IL and in Delaware County, IN our advocates helped voters who were wrongly told they could not wear Black Lives Matter masks or sweatshirts at the polls.

And our volunteers helped officials in Lawrence County, Illinois quickly establish new voting procedures after the Clerk had wrongly told quarantined voters that they could not vote.

These important wins could not have happened without our Election Protection volunteers, our community partners working on the ground, our supporters, and every individual who helped us share the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline in person and online. Thank you all.

Yesterday's numbers prove that voters in Illinois and Indiana take their rights seriously, and that civic engagement is at an all-time high. As we wait for each vote to be counted, we are grateful to all of you who help protect the right to vote.

Election Protection is the nation’s largest non-partisan voter protection program; we work to ensure that every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast their ballot. Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights partners with the national Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and Kirkland & Ellis LLP to run the local team for Election Protection. We train legal volunteers to answer all calls coming from Illinois and Indiana using the toll-free hotline 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683). Learn more here.