Starting today, Kane County Connects begins a series of election-related articles through the Nov. 4 General Election.

The purpose of this exercise is simply to try to get more people interested in the election process, participate in local government and understand where to find more information. We hope to spur interest in the Nov. 4 election in five ways:

1. We know the task of voting sometimes seems daunting, so we’ll break down the ballot into easy-to-understand segments.

2. We’ll point out where to find stuff. The Kane County Clerk’s Office provides a number of online and print resources, but sometimes it’s tough to know where to look. We’ll make it easier for you.

3. We’ll try to make it fun. There’s great joy in exercising your fundamental right to vote, and there are a lot of interesting items on this year’s ballot. We’ll write in a conversational tone and in a way we hope will make the reading enjoyable.

4. We’ll provide an opportunity for you to state your opinion. But we’re going to be pretty strict about the rules. You’re going to have to identify yourself using your full, real name, address and telephone number. (We’ll publish your town of residence but not your full address, and the phone number is for confirmation purposes, not publication.) We have launched a new opinions page, and that’s where opinions will land.

5. We’re going to ask for your help. We need people to get excited about the process, share posts on social media and talk this up to your friends.

We’re not going to try to convince you to vote for a particular candidate, political party or referendum question. That’s entirely up to you. As we said above, you’ll have an opportunity to express your opinion, but this space should be a spin-free zone — and we’re asking your help to (as they say in Star Trek: The Next Generation) “make it so.”

If you see anything that you feel is incorrect, if you feel the information isn’t fairly presented, if you see a typo or an omission, let us know, and we’ll do our best to correct it right away.

Contact community outreach coordinator Rick Nagel at ricknagel23@gmail.com or 630-915-3747.

2014 General Election

Candidates List
Referenda
Sample Ballots