What Time Do Polls Open on Election Day in Chicago? 6 A.M. Tuesday, and They Close at 7 P.M.

Polls open at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, in Chicago and across Cook County, and they close at 7 p.m. The questions behind the search are trending nationally this morning — “what time do polls open on election day” and “voting near me” both sit in the top tier of Google Trends' United States snapshot — and Chicago's own answers come from the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners' official 2026 calendar: Election Day voting runs 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., and a Chicago voter may cast a ballot at their assigned precinct or at any vote center in the city.

Monday is the last day of early voting, at 55 city sites and 56 suburban Cook County sites, for anyone who would rather not wait for Tuesday. Voters who still hold a mail ballot have two safe routes left: return it in person or to a drop box by the close of polls on Tuesday, or mail it so it is postmarked by Election Day. Anyone who is not registered, or whose registration needs updating, can still register and vote on Election Day itself — same-day registration continues at every polling place and vote center. Suburban Cook County voters can confirm their polling place and see a personalized sample ballot through the Cook County Clerk's voter information pages.

And the third trending question — is there school on Election Day — has a clean Chicago answer: no. Chicago Public Schools is closed on Tuesday, Nov. 3, with no classes for students and district offices closed, the second of two straight days out for CPS families after Monday's parent-teacher conferences. Polls close at 7 p.m. Tuesday; anyone in line at a Chicago polling place when the doors close should stay in it and ask an election judge for guidance.