Elections were held in
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
on November 4, 2008.
Primaries were held February 5, 2008.
Election information
Turnout
Primary election
For the primary election, turnout was 40.89%, with 2,986,982 votes cast.
Turnout by county
General election
For the general election, turnout was 71.60%, with 5,577,509 votes cast.
Federal elections
United States President
Illinois voted for the Democratic ticket
Ticket or tickets may refer to:
Slips of paper
* Lottery ticket
* Parking ticket, a ticket confirming that the parking fee was paid (and the time of the parking start)
* Toll ticket, a slip of paper used to indicate where vehicles entered a to ...
of Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
and Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
.
This was the fifth consecutive presidential election in which Illinois had voted for the Democratic ticket.
United States Senate
Incumbent Democrat Dick Durbin
Richard Joseph Durbin (born November 21, 1944) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of Illinois, a seat he has held since 1997. A member of the Dem ...
was reelected to a third term.
United States House
All 19 of Illinois’ seats in the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
were up for election in 2008.
The Democratic Party flipped one Republican-held seat, making the composition of Illinois' House delegation 11 Democrats and 8 Republicans.
State elections
State Senate
One-third of the seats of the Illinois Senate
The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the ...
were up for election in 2008.
State House of Representatives
All of the seats in the Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...
were up for election in 2008.
Judicial elections
Judicial elections were held.
Ballot measure
Illinois voters voted on a single ballot measure in 1998.[
This was the first time since the ]1998 Illinois elections
Elections were held in Illinois on Tuesday, November 3, 1998. Partisan primary, Primary elections were held on March 17, 1998.
These elections saw Democratic Party (United States), Democrats make gains. The Democratic Party went from holding no ...
that a statewide ballot measure was presented to Illinois voters.[
]
Proposed call for a Constitutional Convention
A measure which would call for a state constitutional convention failed.[ Article XIV of the ]Constitution of Illinois
The Constitution of the State of Illinois is the governing document of the state of Illinois. There have been four Illinois Constitutions, with the fourth version adopted in 1970. That constitution is referred to as the "Constitution of Illinois ...
requires that Illinois voters be asked at least every 20 years if they desire a constitutional convention, thus this election was constitutionally required to be held.[Constitution of the State of Illinois]
Article 14 - Constitutional revisions
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Local elections
Local elections were held. These included county elections, such as the Cook County elections.
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Illinois Elections, 2008
2008 elections in the United States by state