In-Person Voting
On the August 4 election, residents may cast their ballot at their polling place. Curb-side voting is also available. Residents can call their local election official for details. Local election officials are preparing polling places to provide space between voters and poll workers, and providing other safeguards, like hand sanitizer, face masks and face shields for poll workers.To find a polling place, visit the Voter Outreach Portal at www.voteroutreach.sos.mo.gov. Find contact information for a local election authority here.
Absentee Ballot Voting
Voting by absentee has been available for more than 30 years. Until recently, six excuses existed to obtain an absentee ballot, all but one of which require a notary.· Residents who are incapacitated or confined due to illness, are not required to have their ballot envelope notarized.
· Residents who are voting absentee due to any of the other reasons – religious beliefs or practice, working as an election worker, incarcerated but still eligible to vote, being absent from a election jurisdiction on election day or being a certified participant in an address confidentiality program – are required to have their ballot envelope notarized.
SB 631 created another justification to vote by absentee ballot. The new, seventh option allows voters to be eligible if they have coronavirus or are at risk because they fall into any of the following categories: are age 65 or older; live in a long term care facility; have chronic lung disease or moderate to severe asthma; have serious heart conditions; are immunocompromised; have diabetes; have chronic kidney disease and are undergoing dialysis; or have liver disease. Under this exemption, residents are not required to have their ballot notarized.
Absentee ballots may be requested in person, by mail, facsimile or email. An in-person request may be made up until the day before the election and the ballot completed in the office of the election official; other methods of request must be made by July 22. A dual absentee/mail-in ballot application may be found here.
Absentee ballots may be returned to the local election authority in person or by mail. Absentee ballots must be received in the election office by the close of the election, 7 p.m. on Aug. 4.
Mail-in Voting
SB 631 created a mail-in ballot option available to all registered voters. Ashcroft said this is a temporary option available in 2020 due to COVID-19.Any registered voter may request a mail-in ballot in person or by mail. Requests must be made by July 22. A dual absentee/mail-in application may be found here.
The ballot envelope, per state law, must be notarized. Additionally, state law requires mail-in ballots to be delivered to the local election authority by U.S. mail only. Ballots must be received in the local election authority's office by the close of the election, 7 p.m. on Aug. 4.
Notary Required
Several voting options require a ballot envelope to be notarized. A Notary Public provides this service. Notarization helps to assure that the person who requested the ballot is the same person who is submitting it.Ashcroft said state law forbids notaries from charging a fee to notarize an absentee ballot. However, SB 631 did not forbid notaries from charging to notarize a mail-in ballot. As a result, the Secretary of State's office is compiling a list of organizations and individuals who are volunteering to provide both services free of charge.
A list of volunteer notaries may be found here.
©2020 The Rolla Daily News, Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
