Illinois GOP Chair Criticizes Chicago's Multilingual Ballots, Citing Oversight Concerns
Bob Grogan argues that offering ballots in 12 languages creates unnecessary complexity and potential vulnerabilities for election monitoring.
Illinois Republican Party Chairman Bob Grogan has raised concerns about Chicago's extensive use of multilingual ballots, suggesting that the availability of voting materials in 12 languages complicates election monitoring and may be an example of "big city virtue signaling."
Grogan told Fox News Digital that the proliferation of ballot versions in languages such as Tagalog, Gujarati, and Urdu presents challenges for election judges and party observers tasked with ensuring the accuracy of voting materials. He also questioned the necessity of some translations, noting that many immigrants who speak these languages also have proficiency in English.
Chicago voters can cast ballots in English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Tagalog, Polish, Gujarati, Urdu, Ukrainian, Arabic, and Russian. According to a spokesperson for the Chicago Board of Elections, Section 203 of the U.S. Voting Rights Act mandates the provision of materials in Spanish, Chinese, and Hindi in specific precincts. The board stated that the inclusion of other languages aligns with Cook County's ordinance to ensure uniform voting opportunities throughout the county.
Data from the Chicago Board of Elections for the March primary indicated that some of the less common language options saw minimal usage. For instance, only nine ballots were cast using the English-Gujarati option, 15 used English-Urdu, 10 used English-Arabic, and 25 each used English-Russian and English-Ukrainian. More widely used translations included 4,474 English-Polish ballots, 2,183 English-Chinese, 664 English-Hindi, 352 English-Korean, and 100 English-Tagalog.
Grogan also highlighted perceived inconsistencies in language accessibility across different counties, noting that Chicago offers touchscreen ballots in 12 languages while nearby DuPage County provides fewer options. He suggested a lack of uniformity in how language requirements are applied.
Beyond the necessity of certain translations, Grogan expressed broader concerns about election security, arguing that election judges and party observers face difficulties in independently scrutinizing ballots in languages they do not understand. The Chicago Board of Elections responded by stating that it employs in-house staff for translations and assists multilingual media. The board also noted that voters are permitted to bring interpreters under specific conditions.
For the upcoming November general election, the Board reported that as of a recent count, 810 out of 7,218 assigned election judges are multilingual, speaking languages including Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati, Polish, Korean, and Tagalog.
Grogan acknowledged that the risk of an election security vulnerability depends on the extent to which translated ballots are utilized. In the March primary, multilingual ballots accounted for approximately 1.85% of the total 424,564 ballots cast citywide. Grogan stated that while a small number of ballots in a particular language presents a minimal risk, a significant increase in usage could heighten concerns.