County Clerks From Cook, Knox, Lake, and Tazewell Join Nationwide Effort To Secure Grant Funding And Support
A delegation of Illinois County Clerks was in Washington DC on September 30th for meetings throughout the day with legislators to discuss the continued need for Federal Government Grant Funding and support of Election Infrastructure. The bipartisan delegation included Cook County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Monica Gordon, Knox County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Scott Erickson, Lake County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Anthony Vega, and Tazewell County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds John C. Ackerman along with Cook County Deputy Clerk of Elections Edmund Michalowski and Tazewell County Chief Deputy Clerk Dan Sullivan.
Federal Grant Funding of elections infrastructure between 2019 and 2021 was on average $400 million each fiscal year, then it was dramatically decreased to $75 million for 2022 and 2023, then $55 million in 2024, and now $15 million for 2025. The Delegation was requesting a return to the $400 million level and stressed the need for stability and consistency in funding rather than such dramatic changes from one year to the next.
The bipartisan Illinois Delegation also discussed the need for continued Federal CyberSecurity Intelligence sharing of national and international threats as well as concerns they have with proposed changes to the US Postal Service that if implemented could impact Vote-By-Mail.
They were joined by over 80 Election Authorities from 26 states throughout the United States for “Election Infrastructure Advocacy Day 2025”.
The Illinois Delegation meet with Representative Danny Davis and Senator Tammy Duckworth and staff for Representative Bradley Schneider, Representative Darin LaHood, Representative Eric Sorenson, Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, and Senator Dick Durbin.
In addition Clerk John C. Ackerman, Clerk Monica Gordon, and Deputy Clerk Edmund Michalowski meet with staff for Representative Mary Miller and joined Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia and City of Madison Deputy Clerk Bonnie Chang for a meeting with staff for Representative Laurel Lee of Florida and the Majority Staff for the House Administration Committee.
All expenses for this trip were funded by a Private Grant from the Project for Election Infrastructure, with the exception of Cook County that financed their own trip. No public funding was utilized for this trip by Tazewell County, Knox County, or Lake County.
“I am proud to stand with election officials from across the country in Washington, D.C., to call for sustained federal investment in our election infrastructure. We are all committed to protecting every vote, but the reality is that rising costs, growing cybersecurity threats, and increased demands on our elections cannot be met without strong federal support. Restoring $400 million for election security grants is essential to ensure safe, secure, and reliable elections in Ilinois and in every community nationwide. Protecting our democracy requires partnership, and voters deserve nothing less,” Lake County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Anthony Vega.
“This delegation brought together Local Election Authorities from large urban jurisdictions and medium size downstate jurisdictions, both Republican and Democrat Elected Officials” stated Tazewell County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds John C. Ackerman. “Elections over the past decade have become more complex and have witnessed dramatically increased cost and staffing demands. With the strength of a united message, it is my hope the Congressional members and staff see the vital importance of our need for Federal Government support and assistance.”
“This trip proved to be very successful in building bridges with our Federal partners” stated Knox County Clerk & Recorder of Deeds Scott Erickson. “They now have a better understanding of what important Election items we are concerned with.”
“The Advocacy Day experience was a way to show Congress that we had Bipartisan support to discuss the need for essential funding for election security and infrastructure” stated Tazewell County Chief Deputy Clerk Dan Sullivan.
***Courtesy of the Knox County Clerk and Recorder***
