2016 Illinois Comptroller special election

← 2014 November 8, 2016 2018 →
Turnout	67.41%
Nominee Susana Mendoza Leslie Munger Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,676,244 2,404,723 Percentage 49.45% 44.43%
County results Congressional district results Precinct results Mendoza:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%     >90% Munger:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%     >90% Tie:     40–50%     No votes
Comptroller before election Leslie Munger Republican Elected Comptroller Susana Mendoza Democratic

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v t e

Aspecial election forIllinois Comptroller took place on November 8, 2016. After comptrollerJudy Baar Topinka died shortly after herreelection in 2014, Republican GovernorBruce Rauner appointedLeslie Munger, a former business executive and unsuccessful 2014 nominee for theIllinois House of Representatives, to fill her seat at the beginning of his term in 2015.^[1] PerIllinois state law, a special election was held to elect a comptroller to finish Topinka's term. Munger ran as the Republican nominee against DemocraticChicago City ClerkSusana Mendoza.^[2] State SenatorDaniel Biss ran for the Democratic nomination, but dropped out in November 2015.^[3]

Mendoza defeated Munger by 49.45% of the vote to Munger's 44.43%, becoming Illinois' tenth comptroller on December 5, 2016.

The primaries and general elections coincided with those for federal elections (president,House andSenate), as well as those forother state offices.

Topinka died in December 2014, shortly after being re-elected to a second term in November, but before that second term began, outgoing Democratic GovernorPat Quinn (who lost his ownbid for re-election) appointed his former budget chiefJerry Stermer to fill the remainder of Topinka's first term, allowing Governor-elect Bruce Rauner to make his own appointment for what would have been Topinka's second full term.^[4]

In an early January 2015 special session, the Democratic-ledIllinois General Assembly approved a bill requiring that a special election be held at the next regular statewide election for any vacancy in anystatewide executive office that occurs more than 28 months before the end of the term. Governor Quinn signed the bill shortly thereafter.^[5] Whoever incoming GovernorBruce Rauner appointed to fill Topinka's second term would serve only until a 2016 special election, instead of serving the full four-year term. The special election law received criticism fromRepublicans, who described it as a move to weaken Governor Rauner by shortening the term of his appointee.^[4]

For the state-run primaries (Democratic and Republican), turnout was 35.94%, with 2,755,220 votes cast.^[6][7] For the general election, turnout was 67.41%, with 5,412,543 votes cast.^[6][7]

• Susana Mendoza,City Clerk of Chicago^[8][9]

• Daniel Biss, state senator^[3][8]

• Leslie Munger, incumbentComptroller^[2][9]

• Claire Ball, corporate accountant,U.S. Cellular^[10][11]

• Tim Curtin, former international representative forUnited Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America Local 925 national staff^[12]

• Illinois special elections
• 2016 Illinois elections
• Illinois Comptroller elections
• 2016 United States state auditor elections

• Articles with short description
• Short description with empty Wikidata description
• Use mdy dates from September 2023