How many delegates does Illinois have, and how are they awarded?
CHICAGO (CBS) – Even though President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have already clinched the nominations of their respective parties, Illinois voters still have a chance to weigh in on Tuesday for the state's primary election.
Last week, CBS News estimated that Trump will be the presumptive 2024 Republican nominee after his win in Washington state and amassing the 1,125 delegates needed for the GOP nomination.
President Biden won the requisite number of delegates for the Democratic Party's nomination last Tuesday with win in Georgia, CBS News projected.
But Tuesday's primary in Illinois will provide both candidates a chance to add to their delegate counts and test their strength ahead of the Nov. 5 general election.
How many Republican delegates does Illinois have and how are they awarded?
In the Republican primary in Illinois, there will be 64 delegates up for grabs.
The winner of the statewide popular vote earns all 13 statewide delegates. The remaining 51 delegates are divided up by the state's congressional districts. Each of Illinois' 17 districts is worth three delegates.
In the 2016 Republican primary election, then-candidate Trump won 54 of Illinois' 69 delegates. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) won nine delegates and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich won six delegates.
Illinois has since lost a congressional district after the redrawing of legislative maps following the 2020 census.
How many Democratic delegates does Illinois have and how are they awarded?
In the Democratic primary in Illinois, there will be 177 delegates up for grabs.
Of those, candidates are awarded a share of 147 pledged delegates based on their statewide vote and the vote in individual congressional districts. The allocation of delegates is proportional to a candidate receiving 15% or more of the vote.
The remaining 30 delegates are unpledged.
In the 2020 Democratic primary election, Biden won a majority of the state's pledged delegates (95 out of 155), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) won 60 pledged delegates.
Those delegates will go on to vote for their respective party's nominee at the party conventions this summer. The Republican National Convention will take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from July 15 through July 18. The Democratic National Convention will be in Chicago, taking place from Aug. 19 through Aug. 22.
What's the current Republican delegate count?
Former President Trump already came into Tuesday's contests with a significant lead in the delegate count, according to the CBS News Delegate Tracker. His only remaining challenger, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, suspended her campaign on March 6 after winning only a small minority of delegates.
After Tuesday, there will still be primary contests throughout the country in the weeks and months to come.
