On December 3, the Illinois legislature passed SB 172, after deleting an amendment that would have injured ballot access. The bill expands election-day registration, and also increases the period of time in which early voting may take place. On December 2 the bill had been amended to delete the ability of qualified parties to nominate someone by party meeting (assuming no one had run in the primary for that party, for that office). But after that amendment got bad publicity in Gapers Block, an on-line Chicago newspaper, that provision was removed from the bill. Thanks to Phil Huckelberry for this news.