The recent article in the Dixon Telegraph (April 17, 2026) showing that at least 60 dead people were summoned for jury duty for an April trial based on a jury list provided by Whiteside County raises the question of the accuracy of the Illinois voter rolls.

The jury list is derived from several Illinois document sources that are apparently not updated regularly. Illinois has had a long history of the deceased voting, according to Bob Crawford, a retired journalist who covered Chicago politics and was often called the dean of city hall politics.

Voter rolls were not purged of decedents, so others could vote on behalf of the dead person, according to Crawford.

Names were removed from tombstones and used to fill out voter registration cards, suggesting they were still living. It was difficult to find volunteer Republican election judges in Chicago, so Democrats would masquerade as Republicans. Security officers usually did not object since they were being paid by the “machine,” according to Crawford.

With no Republicans monitoring shaky activity at the precinct polls, the Democrat precinct captain would vote for those who did not come in to vote. Voters would be promised a warm meal or drink at a local bar plus $5 to vote for the “right” politician, according to Dick Simpson, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago. We have often heard the old adage: My relative always used to vote Republican; now that he is deceased, he votes Democrat. There may be some validity to this statement.

Illinois’ no-ID law enables deceased voting. Voters are not required to show ID, and poll watchers cannot request one. Instead, poll watchers must determine eligibility only by comparing the voter’s signature to the one on file. The state considers a signature sufficient for verification. Skilled signature forgers familiar with a decedent’s handwriting can likely exploit the system. Expecting a poll watcher to act as a handwriting expert is unreasonable.

Efforts have been made to update the voter roll. Conservative groups Illinois Family Action, Judicial Watch and Breakthrough Ideas sued in March 2024, arguing that Illinois’ delegation of voter roll maintenance to local jurisdictions is improper (Democracy Docket). In February 2026, U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood, Mary Miller and Mike Bost wrote to the Illinois State Board of Elections, claiming the state was not complying with the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) by failing to maintain voter rolls (Sun-Times). These representatives note that few voter removals occurred after the 2024 election, despite years of outmigration of registered voters from Illinois. They cite extended mail-in ballot counting, lack of voter ID and a decentralized list as causes of inaccuracy.

In July 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a federal lawsuit challenging the procedure Illinois uses in maintaining its voter registration rolls (Capitol News Illinois). The complaint states that Illinois is failing to comply with the NVRA, which requires a “general program” to reasonably remove from the voter rolls ineligible voters, such as those who have moved or have passed away. The state of Illinois is pushing back, arguing that it uses its own election procedures and is not required to provide unredacted voter data to the Feds (Capitol News).

Any person versed in computerized data file management could easily analyze the voter roll data and inputs and correct the inaccuracies. Politicians in Illinois can be expected to work on this issue at a snail’s pace, with the final outcome being to settle for the status quo.

After all this activity, surely the dear departed, who still vote, are probably unhappy with the actions of some state representatives, conservative action groups and the Feds.

• Chuck Roberts is a freelance writer in Rochelle.