SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Illinois has joined forces with 13 other states and the District of Columbia to sue TikTok, alleging that the app harms the mental health of children.

TikTok prohibits users under 13 from signing up for its main service and imposes content restrictions for users under 18. 

However, 14 attorneys general, including Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, argue that children can easily bypass these restrictions, allowing them to access the same content as adults. 

This comes despite TikTok’s claims that the platform is safe for children.

Early voting for the 2024 general election begins at some spots in suburban Cook County this week, the Cook County Clerk’s Office said, with “limited” early voting locations set to open Wednesday.

According to the clerk, the voting locations will also debut a new technology tool that will enable voters to update their voting signature in real time. The Clerk’s office is expected to hold a press conference at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday to reveal more.

Beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 9, early voting will open at all five Cook County Circuit Courthouse locations, as well as the Clerk’s Office located at 69 West Washington Street.

More locations will open Oct. 21, and can be found on the clerks’ website.

In Chicago, early voting opened Oct. 3. Early voting opened in nearly all other Chicago area counties in late September.

VOTER GUIDE: Your guide to voting in the 2024 Illinois general election

According to projections released by CBOE, nearly 50,000 voters have registered since June, with the biggest gains seen among those between the ages of 18 and 35.

Officials with the board believe that 20-to-30% of voters will cast early ballots in the election, reflecting trends that have emerged in the last two election cycles.

With a presidential election on the ballot, city officials expect higher turnout, with 73.3% of voters casting ballots in the 2020 election.

Here’s what to know as you prepare to vote:

How to register to vote in Illinois

Multiple avenues exist for voters to register in Illinois, starting with automatic voter registration, available at Secretary of State’s Office locations and other public facilities in the state.

Voters can also register to vote via the mail by printing out a form and returning it to their local county clerk’s office, or can deliver the form in-person to those offices.

The form to do so can be found here. The deadline for this type of voter registration is 28 days prior to the election, which will fall on Oct. 8, 2024.

Voters can register online via the State Board of Elections’ website, with a deadline of Oct. 20 for that type of registration.

Finally, voters can register during a grace period prior to and including Election Day, going to their local county clerk’s office or designated polling places, with proper identification required. Voters registering in this fashion will be required to submit ballots on the same day that they register.

How to vote in Illinois

Illinois voters can of course vote on Nov. 5 in the general election, but there are multiple other ways to cast ballots in the state.

The first one available to voters will be early voting. Most counties permit early voting at local county clerks’ offices, with additional sites opening throughout the election cycle.

Voters can also cast ballots via the mail. Applications to do so can be found on the state Board of Elections’ website, and must be returned no later than five days prior to the election.

Overseas and military voting are also available for Illinois residents who won’t be in the country on Election Day, with a full manual available on the Board of Elections’ website.

A full rundown of voting options can be found here.

How to vote by mail in Illinois

Illinois residents who are interested in voting by mail can do so long as they are registered to vote, according to state law.

The deadline to request a mail-in ballot is five days before the election, or Oct. 31, 2024. Those ballots must then be postmarked no later than Election Day on Nov. 5, or dropped into a designated dropbox by the end of the day on Election Day.

Voters also can still choose to vote in-person, with specific steps laid out to do so on the Board of Elections’ website.

Full information on how to register to vote by mail, and other assorted information about policies enshrined in state law, can be found on the NBC Chicago app.

Who’s on the ballot in Illinois?

The presidential election will appear at the top of the ticket, but voters throughout the state will also choose their state representatives, and in some cases their state senators, and voters in Chicago will even elect a school board for the first time.

Illinois is taking an election cycle off from voting in U.S. Senate races, with Sens. Dick Durbin up for re-election in 2026 and Tammy Duckworth in 2028.

However, state voters will be tasked with voting for president, with Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. all on the ballot for that office.

In addition to the presidential race, all 17 of Illinois’ seats in the U.S. House of Representatives will be on the ballot, as will all of the state’s House seats and a third of the state’s Senate seats.

There will also be three advisory questions on the ballot at the statewide level, along with referendums in numerous communities and counties.

Finally, there will be a limited number of races at the municipal and county levels in the 2024 general election.

Voters can check for candidates in various offices via the state Board of Elections’ website.

A beloved Illinois restaurant is closing down after more than six decades in business. 

Petey’s Bungalow Restaurant & Lounge in Oak Lawn, less than an hour from Chicago, is set to close its doors for the last time on October, 15, the restaurant said in an emotional statement. 

The supper club style steakhouse and seafood restaurant was run by Petey Kattos and his wife Mary for 63 years. 

The young couple opened the restaurant together in 1961, but sadly Mary passed away last year drawing the couple’s venture to an end. 

Heartbroken Petey decided things would not be the same without his beloved wife and announced that he has decided to close this chapter of his life.  

‘Mary and I lived the American dream. Our journey began 63 years ago and we followed our passion of restaurant entrepreneurship by opening and running our own businesses — the Bungalow and Petey’s II,’ the 87-year-old Greek immigrant said. 

‘As time passes, you finally realize when it’s time to end a chapter.’

Petey said he will spend his last remaining days at the restaurant ‘doing what he loves most in the kitchen and greeting friends while honoring any outstanding gift certificates.’

‘From humble beginnings to becoming a cherished local, family run business, we have been privileged to serve generations of families and our community,’ the restaurant’ statement said. 

The restaurant ‘has been a cornerstone of this community, a testament to hard work, dedication, and unwavering commitment to excellence,’ it read. 

The couple’s other business, Petey’s II, which Mary managed, closed in January. 

In 2019 Petey told the Chicago Tribune he was writing a book about his life.

Petey was born on the Greek island of Charos and trained as a chef as a teenager.  

In 1958 he left Greece for America, aged just 21 and after some years working in an Italian restaurant in Chicago, a loyal customer helped him start his own business. 

He met his wife Mary on the train on the way to take English classes downtown. 

The couple married and went on to have two daughters. 

Many locals and loyal patrons recalled their favorite memories of the couple’s restaurant following the closure announcement. 

Among them was the town’s mayor, Terry Vorderer, who wrote: ‘This is a major loss not only for Oak Lawn but for me.’ 

‘I’ve enjoyed hundreds of fine meals, maybe even one of my first dinner cocktails as a young man. God bless Petey, the shortest man I know with the biggest heart and hardest working man I know. You will be missed.’ 

‘Petey’s is a huge childhood memory of mine. Going there with my family, in particular my grandpa who knew Petey very well.. I am so sad to hear this news, but wish Petey the best,’ another fan, Courtney Reardon, wrote. 

‘We loved Petey’s ever since my wife took me there when we first met in 1979!’ Edward Kay fondly recalled. 

Petey felt he could not go on with the venture after losing his wife of more than 50 years

The restaurant served authentic Greek dishes as well as seafood and aged steaks 

This year has seen scores of US restaurants, small ones like Petey’s and big chains, close – but most have been as a result of them having financial problems. 

Big name chains like Applebee’s, TGI Fridays and Boston Market have have all recently shuttered restaurants.

Red Lobster filed for bankruptcy in May and closed almost 100 restaurants.  It has since emerged from bankruptcy. 

BurgerFi  filed for bankruptcy in September – sparking sparks fears of mass closures of its 162 locations. 

Earlier this year, Hooters closed about 40 ‘underperforming’ restaurants at locations om Florida, Kentucky, Rhode Island, Texas and Virginia in a bid to cut costs. 

Across America, mom-and-pop operations have also been shutting.

For example, Fargo’s Pit BBQ in Texas closed after more than two decades of serving brisket, ribs and other barbecue classics.