DuPage County's election division faces a roughly $1.8 million funding gap with early voting tentatively set to begin Sept. 24, raising questions about polling access across the county.
The shortfall has fueled a partisan fight. DuPage County Republican Chairman Kevin Coyne told the DuPage Policy Journal that the Democratic-led County Board "poses clearly a bigger threat to democracy than Donald Trump." He was backing outgoing County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek, who said on the Tuesday, Sept. 1 podcast "Driving It Home with Patti Vasquez" that underfunding of elections posed a greater threat than Trump.
Coyne called Kaczmarek "a complete disaster for the county" while still endorsing her central claim. He blamed Democratic leadership for the county's problems and said they had "absolutely no connection to Donald Trump."
$665,000 approved, $1.8 million gap remains
The County Board held a nearly two-hour special meeting Tuesday, Sept. 1 and approved an additional $665,000 for the election division. The money covers $225,000 for printing and $440,000 for postage, NCTV17 reported. That brings the division's budget to roughly $3.4 million, still about $1.8 million short of what Kaczmarek requested.
Kaczmarek did not attend the meeting.
Chief Deputy Clerk Adam Johnson represented her office and warned that the election judge budget cannot fully staff the planned number of polling places or early voting sites. County officials said Kaczmarek did not provide the detailed budget justification normally required and declined to meet with the board to discuss her request, according to the DuPage Policy Journal.
County Board Chair Deb Conroy said the election budget already runs 14% higher than what DuPage spent during the 2022 gubernatorial election, with postage costs up 201% and printing up 15%.
Board members voted despite frustration
County Board Finance Chair Paula Deacon Garcia, who defeated Kaczmarek in the March 17 Democratic primary, said at the Tuesday, Sept. 1 meeting she voted for the funding reluctantly because vote-by-mail postage was not covered without it.
"I am going to hold my nose, I am going to vote for this, because I feel like we have to assume the clerk will get the vote-by-mails out, and right now, the postage is not there," Garcia said at the meeting, as reported by NCTV17.
Garcia told the Chicago Tribune on Aug. 23 that no one in the budget process "can get a blank check." Conroy told the Tribune that the money was available if needed and that if Kaczmarek would not use it, "she's obstructing the election."
Hinsdale activist Kristina McCloy, founder of Concerned Parents of Illinois, argued the clerk's office had enough money and needed to reallocate existing funds rather than receive new taxpayer dollars. She questioned why Republican board members voted yes instead of demanding an independent review.
Background: censure, investigations, and a contested primary
The County Board censured Kaczmarek in late 2025 for defying financial oversight, flouting accounting rules and stonewalling budget management. The Illinois Attorney General's Office investigated roughly $229,000 in no-bid contracts and election spending tied to her office, the DuPage Policy Journal reported.
Kaczmarek, first elected clerk in 2018, lost the March 17 primary to Garcia. Garcia will face Republican Patricia Kladis-Schiappa, an attorney from Burr Ridge, on Nov. 3.
Early voting is tentatively set to begin Sept. 24 at five temporary locations across DuPage County. Whether those sites are fully staffed depends on how the clerk's office allocates the funding it has. Residents can check the DuPage County Clerk's website for updates on early voting locations and hours.
