by Paul Hamby
The April 8 election results show some Missouri precincts and townships with 10% voter turnout or less. The results mean that in some cases just 5% of the population are choosing board members and tax rates for the other 95% of the population.
Our legislators in Jeff City are working to make local elections more fair.
Senate Bill 485 sponsored by Senator Nick Schroer, moves School Board elections to the November general election.
Senator Schroer said: “Roughly 15% voter turnout in April elections is horrendous. Even with early voting now allowing for voters to have a longer period to get to the polls, our state is still suffering from horrifically low voter participation in April elections. The cost to our county to run these separate elections throughout our state in April is steep! In order to save money by consolidating elections and promoting a much larger voter turnout and participation in who is governing our schools, Missouri must move school board elections to November!”
SB 485 passed out of the Senate Education committee in March. It is waiting for floor action in the full senate. House Bill 539, sponsored by Rep Richard West and Senate Bill 86, sponsored by Senator Joe Nicola have similar provisions.
House Bill 458 moves the filing location for school board members from the school district office to the local election authority (typically the county clerk). This would make the process more open and accessible as most school offices are closed some of the days of the December filing period due to the Christmas break. HB 458, sponsored by Renee Reuter, has been referred to the House election committee and awaits a hearing.
Senate Bill 375 requires school districts and charter schools to offer students who are 17 1/2 years old the opportunity to register to vote. In some cases, Missouri 18-year-olds discover that they cannot vote in their first election because they were not registered to vote before the cutoff date for their first election. This bill, sponsored by Senator Washington, requires schools to proactively help students register to vote, so they can vote in their first election after reaching the legal voting age of 18. SB 375 had a hearing in the Senate education committee in March.
Your voice needs to be heard. Too often, your state senator and state rep only hear from the lobbyist for the Missouri Municipal league or Missouri Association of Counties or National Education Association. They have a vested interest in keeping local elections in April where they have better odds of passing tax increases. Contact your senator and rep. Ask them to support moving local elections to November.
Local taxes and local board elections should be decided by a majority of registered voters, not a tyranny of the minority.
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