All candidates for Illinois judicial office who are running in the March 17 primary election have been rated by the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) Judicial Evaluations Committee, or in a poll of lawyers conducted by the ISBA. The results were made available Feb. 21 on ISBA's Judicial Evaluations page.

Candidates seeking election to the supreme court, the appellate court and the circuit court of Cook County are reviewed in a comprehensive evaluation process. This involves a detailed background investigation by members of the Judicial Evaluations Committee, followed by an in-person interview of the candidate. The Committee then decides whether to rate the candidate qualified, highly qualified, or not qualified for the judicial office being sought (outside of Cook County the candidates are rated highly recommended, recommended, or not recommended). Ratings based on evaluations are the opinion of the ISBA.

Outside of Cook County, an advisory poll is conducted by email and is sent to all ISBA members in the circuit or district from which a candidate seeks election. Licensed attorneys who are not members of the ISBA, or any attorney outside the circuit or district, may request a ballot. Opinions expressed in the poll are of those attorneys who chose to respond and do not reflect the opinion of the Illinois State Bar Association or the opinion of all Illinois attorneys.