Northwestern University's nearly 9,000 undergraduates are arriving in Evanston for the fall 2026 semester, and a packed November ballot is waiting for those who choose to register locally.
NU Votes, the nonpartisan voter engagement initiative run by Northwestern's Center for Civic Engagement, will set up its first registration table at the Welcome Center during move-in on Wednesday, Sept. 9. From there, the program plans campus-wide voter services stations Sept. 25 through Oct. 2, weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., alternating between Norris University Center and Sargent dining hall, according to the NU Votes website.
The numbers matter for Evanston. The city's population is roughly 76,000. Northwestern's undergraduate enrollment stood at 8,997 as of fall 2025, the most recent figure available. Students who choose to register at their campus address vote alongside longtime residents in races that will shape the city's congressional representation and state leadership.
What's on the Nov. 3 ballot
Evanston voters will choose a governor, a U.S. senator, a U.S. representative and an Illinois attorney general, among other state offices, according to The Daily Northwestern's election guide published Sunday, Aug. 16.
The U.S. House race is especially local. Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss won the Democratic primary for Illinois' 9th Congressional District in March, defeating a 15-candidate field with roughly 30 percent of the vote, Fox 32 reported. Biss is replacing retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky, who held the seat since 1999. The heavily Democratic district makes Biss the strong favorite in November. The U.S. Senate seat, meanwhile, is open after Sen. Dick Durbin's retirement.
How students register
Illinois allows online, in-person and mail-in voter registration. Key deadlines from the League of Women Voters of Illinois:
- Sept. 24: Early voting begins
- Oct. 6: Last day for regular paper registration
- Oct. 18: Last day for online registration
- Oct. 29: Last day to request a vote-by-mail ballot
Students who miss those deadlines can still register in person through Election Day under Illinois' same-day registration rules, but they must bring two forms of ID and vote at the time they register.
Students living on north campus vote at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St. South campus students vote at Alice Millar Chapel/Parkes Hall, 1870 Sheridan Rd. The Evanston City Clerk's Office at 909 Davis St. also handles in-person registration.
Campus political life
The Daily Northwestern's guide, written by senior staffer Amy L. Wong, notes that Northwestern's student body leans liberal: nearly 80 percent of respondents in the paper's Spring 2026 poll identified as such. But the campus hosts groups across the spectrum, including NU College Democrats, NU College Republicans, NU Political Union and BridgeNU, a multipartisan discussion organization.
At least one student is going beyond voting. Rising sophomore Hyrum Flores ran for the Democratic Party of Evanston's board of directors this summer.
NU Votes timeline
Students interested in helping peers register can apply to become NU Votes Ambassadors through the Sept. 1 deadline. The full schedule of NU Votes services leading up to Election Day:
- Sept. 9: Registration at Welcome Center during move-in
- Sept. 25–Oct. 2: Voter services stations, weekdays 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
- Oct. 28–Nov. 1: Mail-in voting assistance at Norris, noon–4 p.m.
- Nov. 3–4: Voter Van shuttle from Norris to the Evanston Civic Center, 1–4 p.m.
NU Votes is located at 1813 Hinman Ave. and can be reached at [email protected] or 847-467-3047.
