Kolping Society at 5826 N. Elston in Gladstone Park to serve as 45th Ward’s early voting site
by BRIAN NADIG
The 45th Ward early voting location has been moved to the Kolping Society, 5826 N. Elston Ave., for the upcoming municipal election on Tuesday, Feb. 28.
For last fall’s federal, state and county elections, early voting in the ward took place at the Ho-Chunk Chicago Branch Office at 4738 N. Milwaukee Ave., and for the 2022 primary it was held at the Independence Library at 4024 N. Elston Ave.
The Kolping Society is a charitable Catholic organization. The society’s center is located along the west side of Elston in the 45th Ward, while the east side is in the 39th Ward.
For years the designated early voting place for the 45th Ward was the 16th (Jefferson Park) Police Station, 5151 N. Milwaukee Ave., but the Chicago Board of Elections no longer uses police stations and firehouses as polling places.
Alderman James Gardiner, who also serves as the 45th Ward Democratic committeeperson, said that the Kolping center was chosen as the early voting site because it has a parking lot and is more centrally located given that the ward’s boundaries have been extended north into Edgebrook. The ward also includes all or portions of Wildwood, North Edgebrook, Gladstone Park, Norwood Park, Jefferson Park, Portage Park and Old Irving Park.
“There were poll workers and voters who had expressed concern that there was no parking (lot at Ho-Chunk),” Gardiner said.
Registered voters in Chicago can vote at any of the 50 ward early voting locations, which open Monday, Feb. 13. The hours will be 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day.
Other early voting sites on the Northwest Side include the Roden Library, 6083 N. Northwest Hwy., in the 41st Ward, North Park Village, 5801 N. Pulaski Road, in the 39th Ward and Hiawatha Park, 8029 W. Forest Preserve Drive, in the 38th Ward.
Residents can early vote in any ward regardless of whether they live in that particular ward.
On Election Day, voting at precinct polling places is restricted to those who live in that particular precinct. There are fewer precincts starting in 2023 due to the high number of voters using mail-in ballots or an early voting site.
For those wanting to vote in-person prior to Feb. 13, two Downtown Chicago early voting locations will be open starting Thursday, Jan. 26. One will be at the election board’s offices at 69 W. Washington St. and the other at the board’s “supersite” at 191 N. Clark St.
For more information, visit www.chicagoelections.gov
