Those blue postcards you just got in the mail informing you about the municipal election on Tuesday, April 7 – recycle ‘em.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson signed an executive order today (March 18) declaring the election instead will be held June 2.
According to a statement from Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office, Parson’s earlier order on March 13 declaring a state of emergency gave the governor the authority to move the election day.
“Given the growing concern surrounding COVID-19 and the large number of people elections attract, postponing Missouri’s municipal elections is a necessary step to help combat the spread of the virus and protect the health and safety of Missouri voters,” Parson said in the statement. “Postponing an election is not easy, but we are all in this together.”
The statement indicated that Ashcroft approached Parson to move the election date.
Under the executive order, ballots already printed for the April election may be used in June. Waller said his office will send out new notification postcards.
Ashcroft said officeholders whose terms will expire in April will be allowed to serve until the June 2 election results are certified.
Jefferson County Clerk Ken Waller said he was one of many election authorities around the state pushing for the postponement. He said his desire was based on three factors.
“First, there was a real concern about getting enough election judges. Most of our election judges in Jefferson County, as they are in most places, tend to be older than 60," Waller said. "We were getting calls every day from judges telling us they couldn’t make it.
“Second, with schools and some churches and other public buildings being closed, we would have been forced to scramble for alternate polling places, and there just wasn’t enough time to do that. Consolidating polling places would have been a major inconvenience for a lot of people, particularly those who live in rural areas.
“The third is that I don’t believe we’re going to be able to get enough hand sanitizer to stock each polling place until the middle of April."
The deadline to file as a registered write-in candidate remains March 27, and the deadline to apply for an absentee ballot has been set at May 20.
Any registered voter who is 18 by April 7 will be allowed to vote in the June election; those who turn 18 between April 7 and June 2 will not.