For the convenience of voters, the State of Illinois offers a variety of ways for you to cast your ballot.
• Early Voting
• Absentee Voting By Mail
• Absentee Voting In-Person
• Grace Period Registration/Voting
• Election Day Voting At The Polls
• Disabled Voter's Assistance
With Early Voting, you can vote before the observed Election Day by coming in-person to the Montgomery County Clerk's office. (Do not go to your Polling place, as they will only be open for voting on the observed Election Day.)
Early Voting makes casting your ballot convenient, since you can vote when it fits your schedule.
The early voting period begins 22 days prior to the election and continues through the last Thursday before Election Day.
Early voting must be done in-person at our office:
Montgomery County Clerk & Recorder
#1 Courthouse Square
Hillsboro, IL 62049-0595
Our office is located on the
First floor of the Historic Courthouse
Click HERE for a map to the Historic Courthouse.
You can not be mailed a ballot to vote early. You can only be mailed an absentee ballot. The ballot you receive when voting is the same whether voting absentee, early or at the polling place on Election Day. If you vote early, you can not vote again on Election Day at your polling place.
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If you are registered* to vote in Montgomery County, Illinois, you are eligible to cast an absentee ballot.
As of January 1, 2010, no excuses are necessary for you to vote absentee.
*If you registered by mail without providing identification and will be voting for the first time, you are not eligible to vote absentee by mail. You may vote absentee in-person at the County Clerk's Office or may vote early.
In addition, the following unregistered voters are eligible to vote by absentee ballot:
- Members of the Armed Forces or Merchant Marine and their spouses and dependents whether serving in the United States or abroad;
- U.S. citizens and their spouses or dependents, whose permanent residence is in Montgomery County but who will be temporarily residing abroad on Election Day;
- U.S. citizens (not their spouses or dependents) who maintained a residence in Montgomery County immediately prior to their departure from the United States.
1. Get an application for absentee ballot or contact the County Clerk's office by phone at: (217) 532-9530, and an application will be sent to you
2. Fill out and send application for absentee ballot to the County Clerk’s office by mail
3. Receive absentee ballot packet
4. Return absentee ballot packet*
5. Ballot ready to be processed by County Clerk staff on Election Day.
*Absentee ballot packets must be complete. They are often returned because the application is not signed or the application is not included or no signature on affidavit or ballot not in official affidavit envelope.
1. Confirm that you are registered?
2. Download the Absentee Ballot Application Guidelines and Form
(You need an Application for Absentee Ballot.)
To download forms, you must have Adobe Reader installed on your computer. If you do not have it, click the button below to install a free copy.
The Montgomery County Clerk's Office will need your name, residence address, mailing address and date of birth at the time of request. After we receive your application, a packet with the ballot, Instructions for Voting by Absentee Ballot, certification envelope and a return mailing envelope will be mailed to you. Our office will not mail ballots more than 40 days or less than five days prior to the election.
When you get the absentee ballot packet, follow all instructions on how to vote and return the ballot to the County Clerk's office. Your absentee ballot by mail must be postmarked by midnight on the day before the election and received within 14 days after the election.
If you personally deliver to the County Clerk's Office, the ballot must be received no later than Election Day.
A spouse or direct relative (parent, child, brother or sister) can deliver your absentee ballot to the Montgomery County Clerk’s Office ONLY IF you fill out the following authorization form for personal delivery:
Absentee Ballot Delivery Authorization From
To download forms, you must have Adobe Reader installed on your computer. If you do not have it, click the button below to install a free copy.
Members of the Uniformed Services and their family members or U.S. citizens residing overseas whose last known address is in Montgomery County and wish to vote absentee may do so by completing and mailing an FPCA (Federal Post Card Application)* to Montgomery County Clerk's Office, P.O. Box 595,
Hillsboro, IL 62049-0595. By completing this application, you will automatically be sent an absentee ballot for elections held in that calendar year.
Click here for more information and the FPCA form.
The County Clerk’s Office provides election judges to conduct in-person absentee voting to (registered) residents at those facilities who wish to vote. Voters must be a permanent resident registered at the nursing home address.
If you enter the hospital 14 days or less before an election, you can have an absentee ballot delivered to you. Contact our office at 217-532-9530 to find out more.
- The voter fills out the application and sends it to us.
- We enter the absentee application into the voter registration system.
- We send the voter the absentee ballot packet with instructions.
- The voter votes the ballot and seals it in the ballot certification envelope.
- The voter provides the sealed ballot envelope to us with applicable affidavits in the mail envelope provided.
- We receive the mail envelope and log receipt in the voter registration system.
- We keep the ballot in the sealed envelope until Election Day.
- On Election Day, Election Judges open the sealed ballot envelope
- The ballot is fed into a Ballot Tabulator.
- After the polls close the absentee ballots are tabulated.
- Preliminary Absentee ballot results are reported to the public as part of the precinct results after the polls close on Election Night.
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Any qualified voter may cast an absentee ballot in person at the Montgomery County Clerk's office not more than 40 days or less than one day prior to the election. For more information call our office, 217-532-9530
The Montgomery County Clerk's office offers early voting to any registered voter. Early voting commences 22 days prior to an election and ends five days prior to the election.
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People who miss the deadline to register to vote may still vote in the election if they:
- register to vote, after showing proper ID, in-person at the County Clerk’s Office starting the day after the close of registration (27 days before the election) until 7 days prior to the election
- and then VOTE AT OUR OFFICE AT THE SAME TIME AS REGISTRATION.
Dates, Times, and Location:
Montgomery County Clerk's Office
#1 Courthouse Square
Hillsboro, IL 62049-0595
Monday though Friday – 8:00am-4:00pm
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Election Day Voting At The Polls
If you are planning to cast your ballot on Election Day, you must do so at your designated polling place. Your voter registration card lists your township, precinct number and location of your polling place.
If you need assistance determining your polling place, you can go to the: Illinois State Board of Elections website and search for your polling place by typing in your name and zip code. This will determine if you are registered to vote and if so, will display your polling place's name and address. Or you may call our office for assistance (217) 532-9530.
Or Download A Copy Of ALL The Polling Places In Montgomery County.
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Disabled Voter's Assistance
Click HERE for more information on assistive technology available to disabled voters.
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