No-excuse absentee voting has reached its halfway point in Missouri since starting last Tuesday.
New to Missouri this presidential election cycle, no-excuse absentee voting allows citizens to vote in person before Election Day. So far, county clerks statewide have been surprised by turnout.
Kathy Holstine Campbell, the Executive Director of the Missouri Association of County Clerks and Election Authorities, said no-excuse absentee voting has taken off faster than expected around the state.
“I’ve talked to people from small jurisdictions through to St. Louis County, and we saw really heavy turnout starting with the first day,” Holstine Campbell said. “Though we had expected heavy turnout based on what we were seeing in other states, it really did surprise us.”
"We are ready for whoever wants to come out and vote.”Sandy Collop, Adair County Clerk
Holstine Campbell said some counties expect as high as 20 percent of eligible voters to vote early — exceeding expectations.
And Mid-Missouri counties are reporting higher-than-expected use of this new voting option.
Steve Korsmeyer is the county clerk of Cole County, which includes Jefferson City. He said his county had exceeded 10% voter turnout, as of Tuesday, Oct. 29.
“Turnout’s been [going] real well,” Korsmeyer said. “We’re voting about 1,000 people a day here lately, and we’ve already filled up a machine. They only hold about 5,000 ballots, so we’ve had one machine full already and we’ve had to swap it out.”
Voter turnout is reported to be even higher in Adair County, which includes Kirksville. Sandy Collop, the Adair County Clerk, said they’ve had a steady increase in no-excuse absentee voters during the past week.
“As of [Monday], we have a 15% voter turnout in our county,” Collop said. “Of course, we’re hoping for 75, 80%. Now will we get that? I have no idea, but we’re certainly hoping for that. We are ready for whoever wants to come out and vote.”
Voters can cast their no-excuse absentee ballot through Monday, November 4. Polling times and locations vary by county, and can be found on each county’s website.
Election Day is November 5th.
