Absentee, mail-in voting begins

Election 2020 art

MARYVILLE, Mo. — As the Nov. 3 election approaches, absentee and mail-in voting has begun in Missouri and Nodaway County, and it’s not too late to take part.

The Missouri Secretary of State’s office and each local election authority have put out information to help voters make the best decision for themselves this election, and to help sort through how to make sure ballots are properly submitted.

The deadline to register to vote in Missouri is Oct. 7. Voters in Nodaway County can register by printing off the registration form from the Missouri Secretary of State’s website and sending it to the Nodaway County Clerk’s office, or in-person at the Nodaway County Clerk’s office. The Nodaway County Clerk’s office is located inside the Nodaway County Administration Center at 403 N. Market St. in Maryville. Mail-in registration must be postmarked by Oct. 7.

Voters can check their current registration status on the Secretary of State’s website at s1.sos.mo.gov/elections/voterlookup.

Once registered, voters may cast their ballots in-person on Election Day, via mail-in ballot or by absentee ballot if they qualify.

The last date to request an absentee or mail-in ballot is Oct. 21. All ballots, both absentee and mail-in, must be received by the county clerk’s office by 7 p.m. on Election Day, regardless of the postmark. The post office recommends sending ballots through the mail as soon as possible to ensure they arrive in time to be counted, but no later than Oct. 27 — a week before Election Day.

There is a difference between voting absentee and utilizing a mail-in ballot: To vote absentee, a voter must meet one of seven requirements, and in some cases, an absentee ballot does not need to be notarized. Absentee voting can also be done in-person before Election Day. Mail-in ballots are available to everyone, and must be notarized in all cases.

Nodaway County Clerk Melinda Patton said in an email to The Forum that as of Monday, her office has processed 21 mail-in ballot requests, mailed out 496 ballots (including both absentee and mail-in ballots) and has had 98 walk-in absentee voters.

Absentee

Voters in Nodaway County can request an absentee ballot by mail or in-person from the Nodaway County Clerk’s office. An absentee ballot request form can be obtained from the clerk’s office or the Secretary of State’s website. Absentee ballots may be returned in person at the clerk’s office, regardless of whether the absentee ballot is received by mail, or may be returned through the mail to the clerk’s office.

Voters may also vote absentee in-person up until Nov. 2. In-person absentee votes do not need to be notarized.

To vote absentee, a Missouri voter must provide one of the following seven reasons:

• Absence on Election Day from the jurisdiction of the election authority in which the voter is registered
• Incapacity or confinement due to illness or physical disability, including a person who is primarily responsible for the physical care of such a person
• Religious belief or practice
• Employment as an election authority, as a member of an election authority, or by an election authority at a location other than the voter’s polling place
• Incarceration, provided all qualifications for voting are retained
• Participation in the state’s address confidentiality program due to safety concerns
• The voter has contracted or is in an at-risk category for contracting or transmitting COVID-19

For the COVID-19 exception, which was added for this year only, a voter is considered at-risk if they:

• Are 65 years of age 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 or are undergoing dialysis
• Have liver disease

Voters who utilize this exception are not required to provide proof of any health conditions that qualify them to be at risk.

In addition, voters who utilize the COVID-19 exception or the exception for illness or physical disability are not required to have their ballot envelope notarized. They can simply fill out their absentee ballot and return it through the mail or in-person.

All other absentee ballots must be filled out and placed back in the envelope provided, and then notarized by a certified notary before being returned to the clerk’s office. The Secretary of State’s office provides a list of notaries who provide this service for free at sos.mo.gov/elections/mailinnotary.

The only Maryville notary on the list is Stephanie Patterson at the Maryville Public Library, reachable at the library at 660-582-5281 or by email at [email protected].

Mail-in

Mail-in ballots are available to anyone who would like one. Mail-in ballots can be requested from the county clerk’s office or by printing off the application from the Secretary of State’s website and returning it to the clerk’s office.

All mail-in ballots must be notarized, and must be returned through the mail; they can cannot be dropped off at the clerk’s office like an absentee ballot.