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Read the press release here.

What Chicagoans Will Be Voting For This November

By Tanveer Ali | October 7, 2016 2:11pm | Updated on October 10, 2016 7:20am
 Across the four wards of the Far Northwest Side, early voting jumped an average of 20 percent, according to data from the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.
Across the four wards of the Far Northwest Side, early voting jumped an average of 20 percent, according to data from the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.
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CHICAGO — The vote for president won't be the only thing on ballots in Chicago on Nov. 8.

(SEE THE CITYWIDE SAMPLE BALLOT HERE.)

Here are some citywide highlights :

Illinois Constitutional Amendment: The proposed amendment would require that money raised from gasoline taxes or other transportation-related fees and taxes can only be spent on transportation and nothing else.

Here's the text of that amendment:

Explanation of Amendment: The proposed amendment adds a new section to the Revenue Article of the Illinois Constitution. The proposed amendment provides that no moneys derived from taxes, fees, excises, or license taxes, relating to registration, titles, operation, or use of vehicles or public highways, roads, streets, bridges, mass transit, intercity passenger rail, ports, or airports, or motor fuels, including bond proceeds, shall be expended for other than costs of administering laws related to vehicles and transportation, costs for construction, reconstruction, maintenance, repair, and betterment of public highways, roads, streets, bridges, mass transit, intercity passenger rail, ports, airports, or other forms of transportation, and other statutory highway purposes, including the State or local share to match federal aid highway funds, You are asked to decide whether the proposed amendment should become part of the Illinois Constitution

Citywide nonbinding referenda questions: These "yes or no" votes are advisory and won't change any governmental policies, but are aimed at indirectly affecting elected officials at the state and city level. The three questions are:

On guns: Should the State of Illinois strengthen penalties for the illegal trafficking of firearms and require background checks for gun dealers and their employees?

On school funding: Should the State of Illinois provide full and equitable funding for the Chicago Public Schools?

On development: Should the City of Chicago work with the Federal Government and the State of Illinois to prioritize significant new investments in important infrastructure like roads, bridges, public transportation, river and lakefront redevelopment, and additional green space?

RELATED: What you need to know about early voting and voter registration in Chicago

Countywide referenda questions: One of these questions — on whether to eliminate the Cook County Recorder of Deeds — is binding. The other one on sick time for state employees is not.

The two questions that Cook County residents can voice their views on this November:

On county government: Shall the Office of the Cook County Recorder of Deeds be eliminated and all duties and responsibilities of the Office of the Cook County Recorder of Deeds be transferred to, and assumed by, the Office of the Cook County Clerk by December 7, 2020?

On state employees: Shall Illinois enact the Earned Sick Time for Employees Act which will allow Illinois workers to earn up to 40 hours of sick time a year to take care of their own health or a family member's health?

Judges: In judges races, there are 14 vacancies to fill in county and state courts. All 14 have Democratic candidates running uncontested. Additionally, 57 judges face a vote about whether they can keep their positions.

A number of legal groups have released evaluations on judges on the ballot aimed at helping voters decide who to keep. Among them are evaluations by the Illinois State Bar Association, Chicago Council of Lawyers and the Chicago Bar Association.

U.S. Senator: Sen. Mark Kirk is vying for reelection and faces three challengers: Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, Libertarian Kenton McMillen and Green Party candidate Scott Summers.

President of the United States: This one, you probably know about.

Other races on the citywide ballot: Illinois comptroller (the state's bookkeeper), Metropolitan Water Reclamation District commissioners, clerk of the circuit court, state's attorney (the county's top prosecutor), Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Cook County Recorder of Deeds.

Everyone will also be able to vote for their respective U.S. representative, state senator, state representative and member of the Cook County Board of Review, which examines property assessment appeals.

One race sure to be contentious is the 20th district state representative race in which Michael McAuliffe (R-O'Hare) — who is the only Chicago Republican in the Illinois General Assembly — faces a tough fight for his 11th term against Democrat Merry Merwig.

Depending on where someone is registered, there will also be issues specific to the precinct. Among them are binding votes in several West and Downtown area precincts to "create the West Side Expanded Mental Health Services Program and whether to approve a property-tax levy to finance that new district."

Here's a sample ballot showing what all Chicagoans will have a chance to vote for this year: