The two main gubernatorial candidates are focusing on rural Missouri again Friday and during the final days of the campaign. Governor Mike Parson (R) brings his “Mike works bus tour” to four rural western Missouri towns: his hometown of Bolivar, as well as Clinton, Belton, and El Dorado Springs. He’ll finish Friday evening in Springfield. […]
Tag: voters
Missouri Secretary of State predicts 70% voter turnout for general election
Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft says he expects about a 70% voter turnout for the general election. In 2016, Missouri had about a 67% voter turnout. Local election authorities project their jurisdiction’s voter turnout and then Ashcroft’s office compiles a statewide estimate. And this year, at best, it’s going to be a guess because […]
Audio: Missouri experiences surge in absentee and mail-in voting for General Election
Missouri’s local election authorities have already received more than 555,000 absentee and mail-in ballots combined for the General Election – a jump of about 150,000 requested during this time in 2016. Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft says the increase could impact the polls on Election Day. The figure also includes in-person absentee voting. […]
Audio: Missouri voters must bring one form of ID to the polls on election day
Missouri voters must bring one form of ID with them to the polls next Tuesday. You’ll need to bring one form of ID with you to your Missouri polling location on November 3. That can include your voter ID card from your county clerk’s office, a government-issued photo ID like a driver’s license, […]
Missouri Medicaid expansion: Will it bust the budget or pay for itself?
(Missouri Independent) – When Missouri voters approved Medicaid expansion in August, they were told by the ballot language that the price tag was unknown, with possible costs at $200 million stated alongside $1 billion in potential savings. What is known for certain is that about 250,000 Missourians will become eligible for coverage next year — […]
Republican candidate for Livingston County Coroner enters “Not Guilty” plea in Livingston County court
The Republican candidate for Livingston County Coroner entered a plea of not guilty in the Associate Division of Livingston County Circuit Court Thursday, October 22nd to misdemeanor committing class four election offenses. Online court information shows 37-year-old Joshua Michael Dennis of Chillicothe appeared in person and by an attorney, and he waived formal arraignment. On […]
Galloway bashes Parson on Right-to-Work stance
State Auditor Nicole Galloway made a stop in southwest Missouri’s Joplin Monday afternoon. Galloway, a Democrat who is running for governor, criticized her opponent, Republican Governor Mike Parson, about his stance on making Missouri a right-to-work state. In 2018, voters overwhelmingly opposed passing such a law that would ban mandatory union fees in the workplace. […]
Will St. Louis lead the charge in Approval Voting?
During historically divisive times, one Missouri city could be moving toward a nonpartisan way of electing its leaders. St. Louis voters will decide on Proposition D on the November 3 ballot. It would create a nonpartisan primary system, and implement what’s known as “approval voting” in municipal elections. Mallory Rusch, campaign manager for STL Approves, the group […]
Missouri Amendment Three debate centers around a nonpartisan demographer
Both sides in the debate on Missouri’s Amendment Three November ballot measure presented their case to voters Wednesday evening, in a virtual forum hosted by Springfield’s Drury University. Missourians approved “Clean Missouri” in 2018, which required a nonpartisan demographer to draw state legislative districts. Amendment Three transfers that responsibility to governor-appointed bipartisan commissions. State Sen. […]
Parson and Galloway blast each other repeatedly during Missouri gubernatorial debate
Missouri’s two major gubernatorial candidates clashed during a Friday afternoon debate in Columbia on numerous issues, including Clean Missouri, COVID, Medicaid expansion, and valet parking at the Capitol. The debate, which took place at the Missouri Theatre in Columbia, was sponsored by the Missouri Press Association. Missouri voters approved Clean Missouri in November 2018. It had […]
Missouri Supreme Court: There is no constitutional right to absentee or mail-in voting
The Missouri Supreme Court rejected the arguments of voting rights groups that voters who are afraid of contracting COVID-19 at the polls should not have to get a notary public to sign their mail-in ballots. The Missouri Conference of the NAACP, the League of Women Voters, and two citizens appealed that “The trial court erroneously […]
Audio: Missouri Supreme Court hears oral arguments in November notary requirement case
The Missouri Supreme Court has heard oral arguments in an appeal that aims to remove a notary requirement for mail-in voting for the November election. In April, the Missouri NAACP, the ACLU, and three registered voters sued the state and others, arguing that the steps to vote by mail during a pandemic are unconstitutional. ACLU […]
Audio: Missouri Supreme Court to hear lawsuit over election notary requirement
The Missouri Supreme Court is scheduled to hear an appeal Tuesday that aims to remove a notary requirement for mail-in voting during General Election. In April, the Missouri NAACP, the League of Women Voters, and three registered voters sued the state, the secretary of state and local election officials arguing that the steps to vote […]
Audio: Pettis County Clerk says 1,200 absentee ballots remain missing in the mail
The county clerk in west-central Missouri’s Pettis County says 1,200 absentee ballots that were delivered to the Sedalia Post Office on September 21 are still missing in the mail. Clerk Nicholas La Strada tells our Sedalia affiliate KDRO (AM 1490) that his office was bombarded with phone calls from voters last week, asking where their […]
DHSS announces successful inspection of medical marijuana facilities
The Section for Medical Marijuana Regulation at the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) is pleased to announce a medical marijuana testing facility has passed its commencement inspection. With cultivation, dispensary, and testing facilities now operational, medical marijuana will soon be available to Missouri patients. Director of the Section for Medical Marijuana Regulation Lyndall […]
Audio: Judge rules against removing notary requirement for mail-in voting
A central Missouri judge has ruled against an effort to remove a notary requirement for mail-in voting in the November General Election. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports Cole County Circuit Court Judge Jon Beetum’s decision dismissed arguments by the NAACP and the League of Women Voters that the steps to vote by mail during a […]
Missouri counties mailing new ballots after Amendment 3 language goof
Nearly 2,000 Buchanan County voters in northwest Missouri will be sent new ballots after receiving absentee ballots with language thrown out by the courts. Some voters in southwest Missouri’s Vernon County were reportedly also given ballots with the wrong language. Buchanan County Clerk Mary Baack-Garvey says the county received ballots with the original language for […]
Audio: local election authorities have begun mailing out absentee ballots
Local election authorities have begun mailing out ballots to Missourians who have requested to cast their absentee ballot by mail for November’s election. Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft strongly encourages Missourians not to wait until the last minute to ask for one. He expects mail delays that could cause some ballots to not get counted. […]
Audio: Missouri voters can now cast an absentee ballot in person
Some Missouri election authorities have increased foot traffic today. Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft says today is opening day for voters to cast an absentee ballot in-person for the November election. Voters must meet one of seven requirements in order to vote absentee, including if you will be out of the county […]