The Latest: Mendoza delivers comptroller victory speech
(Erik Hersman/Flickr)
CHICAGO (AP) -- The Latest on Election Day 2016 in Illinois (all times local):
11:30 p.m. - Mendoza delivers comptroller victory speech
Democrat Susana Mendoza is using her state comptroller victory speech to celebrate what she called the "big difference" Democratic women have made in the state of Illinois.
Mendoza is Chicago's city clerk. She defeated Republican incumbent Leslie Munger, who Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner appointed to the post last year after Judy Baar Topinka died in 2014.
Mendoza stood beside Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel during her Tuesday victory speech. She noted the victories of Democrat Kim Foxx for Cook County state's attorney and Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, who defeated Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk.
The big-money special election for comptroller coincided with the presidential contest, thrusting the usually low-profile race into the spotlight.
Munger dominated in fundraising, with millions in donations from Rauner and businessmen aligned with the governor.
------
11:15 p.m. - Mendoza tops Munger for Illinois comptroller
Democrat Susana Mendoza has won the Illinois comptroller's special election over Republican incumbent Leslie Munger.
Mendoza, a former state legislator, is Chicago's city clerk. She'll finish the remainder of the comptroller term, which expires in 2019.
Munger was appointed to the office, which pays the state's bills, by Gov. Bruce Rauner last year after Judy Baar Topinka's 2014 death.
The big-money special election coincided with the presidential contest, thrusting the usually low-profile race into the spotlight.
Munger dominated in fundraising, due to a combined $5 million from two businessmen with ties to Rauner and $2 million from the governor and his campaign fund. About $3 million was transferred to the Illinois GOP for legislative races.
The other candidates were Libertarian Claire Ball of Addison and Green Party candidate Tim Curtin of Hillside.
------
11:10 p.m. - Democrat Brad Schneider defeats US Rep. Dold
Democrat Brad Schneider has won back his old congressional seat, defeating Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Dold in a rematch for the suburban Chicago district.
Schneider topped Dold on Tuesday to earn his second term representing Illinois' 10th congressional district. It includes some of Chicago's northern suburbs and stretches north along the lakefront to Wisconsin and is considered one of the most competitive in the nation.
Dold was first was elected in 2010. He lost the seat to Schneider in 2012, but won it back in 2014.
Running as a moderate, Dold criticized GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump and touted his support for abortion rights and gun control.
Schneider received help from President Barack Obama, who filmed a TV ad urging voters to back Schneider and other Democrats.
------
10:30 p.m. - GOP makes gains on Democrats' supermajority
Illinois Republicans knocked off three incumbent House Democrats and kept an important Chicago seat to make major strides toward reducing the Democrats' supermajority and give GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner more power during an historic budget standoff.
Tuesday was shaping up to be a big night for Republicans in the Legislature. Republican Rep. Michael McAuliffe was re-elected in Chicago to remain the only GOP legislature in the city. Democrats, meanwhile, have lost three of their members -- Reps. Kate Cloonen, John Bradley and Mike Smiddy.
Rauner invested more than $30 million of his own money to help Republicans in key races across the state. Tuesday's results show that money likely helped.
Illinois has been without a budget for 16 months.
------
10:10 p.m. - GOP Rep. Bost retains 12th District House seat
Freshman Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Bost has won another term after defeating Democrat Charles "C.J." Baricevic for a southern Illinois congressional seat.
The 55-year-old former state lawmaker won re-election Tuesday after a campaign during which he said he was willing to work with Democrats in Congress. The Illinois Education Association teachers' union endorsed Bost.
The 31-year-old Baricevic was running for office for the first time. Green Party candidate Paula Bradshaw also competed in the race.
Bost was first elected to the 12th Congressional District in 2014. The district borders Missouri and covers Carbondale, Belleville and Jonesboro.
------
10 p.m. - Krishnamoorthi talks unity in victory speech
Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi says he'll embody middle class values when he becomes a member of the U.S. House.
He won a Chicago-area seat over Republican former Elmhurst Mayor Peter DiCianni.
Krishnamoorthi thanked supporters in a victory speech Tuesday, calling it a "difficult" and "disheartening" campaign season. He says what unites people far outweighs what divides them and that everyone should work together.
He also touched on issues including security and paid parental leave.
The race was an open contest after Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth jumped into the U.S. Senate race. She ousted Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk on Tuesday.
Krishnamoorthi made an unsuccessful congressional bid in 2012 and narrowly lost the 2010 Democratic primary for Illinois comptroller.
------
9:20 p.m. - GOP's McAuliffe keeps House seat in pricey race
Republican state Rep. Michael McAuliffe has fended off a challenge from Democrat Merry Marwig in a key legislative race on which the GOP spent $2.5 million in television ads.
With Tuesday's victory, McAuliffe remains the only Republican legislator in Chicago. His Northwest Side district was one the GOP wanted to keep as they look to prevent Democrats from having a veto-proof majority.
Republicans' ad money was the most spent on any statehouse race in the nation.
Marwig is a political newcomer who took time off from her job at a Chicago software company to run for office.
------
9:15 p.m. - Krishnamoorthi tops GOP candidate for House seat
Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi has won a Chicago-area U.S. House seat over Republican former Elmhurst Mayor Pete DiCianni.
The race was an open contest after Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth jumped into the U.S. Senate race.
Krishnamoorthi, a laboratory executive, is a former deputy state treasurer and assistant attorney general from Schaumburg. He edged out a suburban village president and a state senator in the primary.
Krishnamoorthi led the 8th District race in name recognition and endorsements, including from major newspapers and President Barack Obama, for whom Krishnamoorthi did policy work during his U.S. Senate campaign.
Krishnamoorthi made an unsuccessful congressional bid 2012 and narrowly lost the 2010 Democratic primary for Illinois comptroller.
The district covers a region northwest of Chicago.
------
9 p.m. - Duckworth focuses victory speech on middle class
Democrat Tammy Duckworth is crediting a "relentless focus on rebuilding" Illinois' middle class for her win over Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk.
The two-term congresswoman will become the second woman to serve Illinois in the U.S. Senate.
She addressed supporters Tuesday evening, recalling the 2004 night when the helicopter she was co-piloting was shot down in Iraq while she was deployed with the Illinois National Guard. Duckworth lost both legs.
She calls her recovery a "miracle" and says she'll try to honor the sacrifice of other Illinoisans who are facing challenges.
Earlier in the evening, Kirk called Duckworth to congratulate her and invite her for a beer at Chicago's Billy Goat Tavern. He told supporters the gesture will show other candidates can peacefully "bury the hatchet."
----
8:50 p.m. - Illinois transportation money amendment passes
Illinois voters have approved a constitutional amendment aimed at making sure transportation-related funds aren't used for other purposes.
The measure was the only lawmaker-generated ballot measure this year and had bipartisan support.
The so-called "lockbox amendment" will keep funds generated through tolls, taxes and other related transportation sources from being spent elsewhere.
Supporters of the measure included unions and the construction industry, who argue it'll boost safety by protecting infrastructure. A coalition backing the amendment says that since 2003 nearly $7 billion in transportation-related funds have been used for other things.
Some opponents, including social service groups, questioned why funds for transportation should be protected over other things.
To pass, the measure needed either 60 percent of those voting on the measure or a majority of those voting in the election.
------
8:05 p.m. - Rep. Tammy Duckworth unseats GOP Sen. Mark Kirk
Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth has unseated Illinois Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk.
Duckworth won her bid Tuesday, a boon for the Democrats' bid to regain control of the chamber.
The second-term congresswoman from Hoffman Estates previously served as director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs and in a leadership role with the federal VA. She also lost both of her legs in Iraq when her helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.
Kirk campaigned for a second term in the left-leaning state as an independent voice and was a sharp critic of GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
The former congressman from Highland Park suffered a stroke in 2012, but returned to Washington a year later.
------
8 p.m. - Hillary Clinton beats Donald Trump in Illinois
Democrat Hillary Clinton has won the presidential contest in her home state of Illinois, defeating Republican Donald Trump in her bid to become the nation's first woman commander in chief.
Clinton topped the wealthy New York businessman on Tuesday to pick up Illinois' 20 electoral votes.
The candidates had been locked in an increasingly bitter and divisive fight. Trump repeatedly criticized the former Secretary of State and senator from New York as "crooked Hillary," while Clinton called Trump as "unfit" to be president.
Her victory marks the seventh consecutive presidential election in which Illinois has supported the Democratic candidate. The state last voted for a Republican presidential candidate during George H.W. Bush's landslide victory in 1988.
Clinton was born in Chicago and raised in the suburb of Park Ridge.
------
5 p.m. - Early voting numbers surge in Illinois
The number of Illinois voters who cast ballots before Election Day has far surpassed records from previous years.
The Illinois State Board of Elections released totals Tuesday showing that over 1.7 million residents voted early.
The number, which counted through Monday, includes those who cast early ballots in person, sent them by mail or used grace period registration, which lets people register and vote at the same time.
The vast majority of people who voted before Election Day -- nearly 1.4 million -- cast in-person ballots at polls.
Compared to past presidential contests, over 1.3 million people voted before the 2008 election and over 1.5 million did in 2012.
In Chicago, roughly 400,000 people voted ahead Tuesday's election, with over 325,000 early ballots cast in person. That bested the city's previous record of 260,000 in 2008.
------
3:30 p.m. - Voters split in Hillary Clinton's childhood home
The Chicago suburb where Hillary Clinton grew up is divided in its loyalties on Election Day.
Park Ridge, Illinois, resident Kelly Mearis voted for the Democratic presidential candidate Tuesday. The 34-year-old nurse says she likes the idea that the next president, if it's Clinton, will have grown up in the same neighborhood where she lives.
But another Park Ridge voter -- 92-year-old World War II veteran Nick Korompilas -- says Clinton's association with the suburb "didn't mean a thing" to him. The retired Republican real estate broker voted for another guy in real estate: Donald Trump.
Korompilas survived a kamikaze attack on April 12, 1945, that sunk the U.S.S. Mannert Abele where he served as a medic. He says more than 70 of his fellow Navy mates perished.
That experience, he says, is part of the reason he cast a ballot for Trump at an elementary school not far from Clinton's childhood home. He says he believes the military hasn't received sufficient support under Democrats and that Trump will change that.
------
3 p.m. - No big problems at Chicago-area polls
Cook County Clerk David Orr says he's received no reports of serious problems with voting beyond a few election judges not showing up, a few touch-screen voting machines that had to be replaced and other issues he characterized as minor.
Orr spoke Tuesday afternoon outside a polling station in the Chicago suburb of Park Ridge -- not far from Hillary Clinton's childhood home. Orr's office is responsible for overseeing elections only in suburban areas of Cook County.
Orr says he doesn't think any stations would need to remain open late because of glitches or manpower shortages.
Jim Allen of the Chicago Board of Elections says three polling places opened late in the city because of technical problems. Officials have not yet determined whether it will be necessary to keep those locations opened later.
------
12:15 p.m. - Rain's effect on Illinois voting unclear
Steady rain fell through the morning in much of central and eastern Illinois but election officials say it is too early to tell whether that will affect turnout or push some voters to head to the polls late.
Voters wearing raincoats and carrying umbrellas made their way into polling places in west Champaign Tuesday morning.
Champaign County Clerk Gordy Hulten says he has seen a solid stream of voters at polling places he's visited Tuesday morning.
He says about 38,000 people voted early in the county. That's about half the usual turnout for a November election and he's curious to see whether that means turnout on Tuesday will be lighter than usual since so many people voted before Election Day.
Concerns about potential polling-place problems and voter irregularities have been raised by some during the presidential campaign but Hulten says that only a few of what he called "typical, normal" issues were reported by midday.
------
9:50 a.m. - Illinois voters relieved campaign is ending
Illinois voters are expressing relief the presidential campaign is finally over as they cast their ballots.
Springfield resident Craig Hanson voted Thursday -- part of a record number of early voters in the state. The 56-year-old transmission systems operator says he thinks people are "going to hold their nose and vote this time."
Hanson voted for Republican Donald Trump for president because he believes Democrat Hillary Clinton is "too corrupt."
Kelvin Thomas voted Tuesday morning on Chicago's South Side. He says he's never seen such an ugly campaign. The 57-year-old works for a cleaning service and says he voted for Clinton because Trump has "no political experience at all." He compares that to what he needs if he applies for a job. As he puts it: "I go to apply for a job sweeping or mopping the floor and they want to know if I got any experience."
------
9 a.m. - Ken Bone, debate questioner, casts his vote
Ken Bone has voted, but he's not revealing his choice for president.
The mustachioed, sweater-wearing Bone became an internet sensation after the second presidential debate. The Belleville News-Democrat reports (http://bit.ly/2fzFp3w ) Bone stood in line about 30 minutes Tuesday morning to vote at a church in the village of Shiloh, Illinois.
Bone did several interviews while in line to vote, including one with a Canadian radio station and another with the BBC. He wasn't wearing his red sweater, opting instead for a blue vest over a gray shirt.
He says he's keeping his choice private because he'd rather emphasize the importance of getting to the polls.
------
6:55 a.m. - Early voters saw long lines in parts of Illinois
Illinois saw record early-voting turnout this election year, which led to long lines, especially in Chicago.
Among those who waited to vote Monday was Hector Oliva, who went to the public library in the Chinatown neighborhood.
He said he's been disheartened to see people in the country rally behind racially charged comments from Republican candidate Donald Trump. The 28-year-old declined to say who he voted for but called himself a "begrudging" Democrat and said he didn't vote for Trump.
Early voting has proven popular in Illinois this year. State election officials say nearly 1.3 million people voted through Sunday. That number surpasses the nearly 1.2 million who voted early in the last presidential election.
------
6:05 a.m. - Illinois polling places opening for election
Polls are opening across Illinois as voters prepare to cast their ballots after a contentious national campaign that exposed fissures in what Americans see in the nation's future.
Voters across the nation Tuesday are casting their ballots for candidates running for president and Congress, in addition to state and local offices and referendums.
In addition to casting a ballot for either Democrat Hillary Clinton or Republican Donald Trump for president, Illinois voters will decide whether to give Republican Mark Kirk a second term in the U.S. Senate or replace him Democratic Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth. Their race is expected to be a factor in whether Democrats or Republican control the Senate.
Voters will also decide whether the Illinois Legislature will remain under Democratic control.
------
12 a.m. - Illinois election focuses on Senate, legislative races
Illinois Democrats are counting on a big victory by Hillary Clinton to carry them to important wins in the statehouse, U.S. Senate and a pricey contest for comptroller.
Republicans are angling for more influence in the Democratic-leaning Legislature with the help of wealthy GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner, who has invested unprecedented amounts of money on down-ballot races that will affect what he's able to achieve in the last two years of his term.
Polls open Tuesday morning for the general election.
The Senate race pits GOP incumbent Mark Kirk against U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth. It's among a handful nationally that will determine which party controls the Senate next year.
And the race between Comptroller Leslie Munger and challenger Susana Mendoza has triggered a spending frenzy, with the parties combining to put more than $9.2 million into the campaigns, with Munger getting $6.8 million.