New election law offers Missourians no-excuse, early voting beginning Oct. 25

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Be sure to bring a government-issued ID

By SHERI GASSAWAY
Missouri Correspondent

A new election law that went into effect Aug. 28 offers Missourians the opportunity to vote early without an excuse two weeks before an election day.

For the Nov. 8 general election, early voting begins Oct. 25 and ends Nov. 7 at 5 p.m. Several election authorities in the St. Louis area are extending their hours and offering voting at additional satellite offices to provide the opportunity.

ST. LOUIS CITY
St. Louis City rolled out early voting ahead of its special Sept. 13 primary election for president of the Board of Aldermen. In St. Louis, voters may visit four locations to cast their votes:

  • St. Louis City Election Board, 300 N. Tucker Blvd.
  • Buder Library, 4401 Hampton Ave.
  • Julia Davis Library, 4415 Natural Bridge Ave.
  • Schlafly Library, 225 N. Euclid Ave.

Voting at the election board is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Voting hours at all libraries are Monday, Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday and Wednesday from noon until 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 1 to 4:30 p.m.

ST. LOUIS COUNTY
There are seven early voting locations in St.  Louis County, including:

  • St. Louis County Board of Elections, 725 Northwest Plaza Drive, St. Ann.
  • St. Louis County Mid County Branch Library, 7821 Maryland Ave., Clayton.
  • North County Rec. Complex, 2577 Redman Ave., St. Louis.
  • St. Louis Community College at Meramec, 11333 Big Bend Road, Kirkwood. 
  • St. John’s United Church of Christ, 11333 St. John’s Church Road, Mehlville.
  • St. Louis County Daniel Boone Branch Library, 300 Clarkson Road, Ellisville. 
  • University of Missouri at St. Louis Millennium Student Center, 17 Arnold Grobman Drive, Bellerive Acres.

Voting at the board of election office is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Voting at all satellite offices begins Oct. 27 on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Voting at all locations will be held on Saturday, Oct. 29 and Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Monday, Nov. 7 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ST. CHARLES COUNTY
In St. Charles County, residents may vote early at the St. Charles County Election Authority at 397 Turner Blvd. in St. Peters weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday Oct. 29 and Nov. 5 from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Additionally, one-day satellite voting offices will be available at these locations from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.:

  • Tuesday, Oct. 25 – Augusta Public Library at 198 Jackson St. in Augusta.
  • Wednesday, Oct. 26 – at the Lake St. Charles Retirement Community, 45 Honey Locust Lane in St. Charles.
  • Thursday, Oct. 27 – Rivers Pointe Fire Station #2 at 1300 Le Sieur St. in Portage Des Sioux.

JEFFERSON COUNTY
In Jefferson County, residents must go to Jefferson County Election Authority, 729 Maple St., in Hillsboro to cast an early, no-excuse ballot. Voting is offered weekdays through Oct. 31 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays, Oct. 29 and Nov. 5 from 8 a.m. to noon. The office will extend its hours Tuesday, Nov. 1 through Thursday, Nov. 3 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 4 and Monday, Nov. 7 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

PHOTO ID REQUIRED
The new law also requires voters to show a government-issued photo ID to cast a vote. Acceptable forms of identification include:

  • A non-expired Missouri driver or non-driver license
  • A non-expired military ID, including a veteran’s ID card
  • A non-expired United States passport or other photo ID issued by the United States or the state of Missouri.

People who are registered to vote but do not have any of these forms of identification may cast a provisional ballot.

The provisional ballot will count if the voter returns to the polling place on Election Day with a photo ID or if the signature on your provisional ballot envelope is determined by the local election authority to match the signature on your voter registration record.

MORE VOTING INFO
For more information on voting in Missouri, call 866-868-3245 or visit sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri.

For Illinois, call 217-782-4141 or visit elections.Il.gov.

Absentee voting in Illinois

Illinois has offered absentee voting for a while now.

To vote by mail, absentee ballot requests must be received by your local county clerk’s office by Nov. 3. Completed ballot must be postmarked no later than Election Day. They must arrive at the election office by Nov. 22.

Illinois voters can cast a no-excuse, in-person absentee ballot between Oct. 24 and Nov. 7 at the office of your local election authority or a location designated for in-person absentee voting.

Illinois does not require voters to show ID to vote in person. However, if this is your first time voting in a federal election in Illinois, you must follow these federal guidelines.

 

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