Early voting paused in Chicago to remove Democratic judicial candidate from ballot

Chicago paused its early voting process in the March 19 presidential primary election on Friday to remove a Democratic judicial candidate from the ballot, with plans to reopen on Wednesday.

Early voting began in downtown Chicago on Thursday, but an order from the Appellate Court of Illinois forced the city’s two early-voting ballot locations to close down late Friday, according to a release from the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners. The three-judge appellate panel upheld rulings from a lower court and the Cook County Officers Electoral Board to remove Ashonta Rice from the Democratic ballot.