“Judicial Elections 101” is a social media series published on Instagram and TikTok in the weeks leading up to Cook County’s 2026 primary judicial election. Injustice Watch created the series to provide nonpartisan civic education about how judicial elections work and to build a foundation on which younger voters can learn to use our judicial election guide.
Across 12 social media posts, we provided an accessible on-ramp to our voting guide. The series included explainer videos, informational carousels, and participatory elements across formats and settings. Core content addressed foundational questions that we often hear on social media: Why do we vote for judges in Illinois? How do I know what types of cases a judicial candidate will hear once elected?
The series also took our work beyond the screen and into Chicago’s neighborhoods. Pop-up quizzes at coffee shops and ice cream parlors offered free treats to anyone who could answer three basic questions about judicial elections. These events created low-barrier entry points, reached community members outside our existing social media audience, and reinforced the main point of this series: understanding judicial elections can be fun.
