St. Louis County voters will have more locations to cast their absentee ballots in person ahead of the August primary.
The county’s Board of Elections will operate seven satellite voting centers, up from five during previous elections. The site at the board’s headquarters at the old Northwest Plaza is already open. The other six will begin operating July 21.
The satellite voting centers are located at:
- North County Rec Plex, 2577 Redman Rd.
- University of Missouri-St. Louis Millennium Student Center, 17 Arnold Grobman Drive
- St. Louis County Library — Mid-County Branch,
7821 Maryland Ave. - St. Louis Community College-Meramec Student Center, 11333 Big Bend Rd.
- St. John's United Church of Christ, 11333 St Johns Church Rd.
- St. Louis County Library — Daniel Boone Branch
300 Clarkson Rd.
Right now, people can only vote absentee if they meet one of six criteria. But that will change in November, under a law that takes effect in late August creating a two-week window for early voting.
“That’s why we’re trying to expand those opportunities, and get voters used to and in the habit of having these opportunities and to think about voting absentee in person prior to the election,” said Eric Fey, the county’s Democratic director of elections.
Those who want to request an absentee ballot by mail have until 5 p.m. next Wednesday, July 20, to do so. Everyone except those individuals who are voting absentee because of a disability or because they are caring with someone with a disability must have an absentee ballot notarized. All 21 branches of the St. Louis County Library, and the seven satellite voting locations, have notaries on site.
Fey and Rick Stream, his Republican counterpart, also reminded people that on Election Day, they can vote in person at any polling place. The sample ballot that will be mailed will include the five closest polling places.
Loading...
Counting the votes
Stream and Fey said they are both prepared to answer questions about and defend the process St. Louis County uses to count votes.
It’s become increasingly common for losing candidates to claim elections are rigged. And a number of Republican U.S. Senate candidates, including Eric Schmitt and Eric Greitens, have repeated the lie that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump.
Every step taken at the board is done in a bipartisan fashion, and those steps are then double-checked, officials said. After every election, a few precincts are selected for a hand recount, which is then checked against the machine count.
Stream spent 25 years in various elected offices before he was hired as the Republican elections director, but he said he never understood how complex the election system is. He urged anyone who has concerns or questions to take a tour of the headquarters.
“It convinces people when they come here and see how we operate that hey, we’re safe here in St. Louis County,” Stream said. “Everything is done here appropriately.”
He said that transparency reduces the likelihood that any of his employees will face threats of violence, which have been on the rise nationwide.
Fey added that those with concerns should sign up to be election judges.
“That’s where the rubber meets the road,” he said. “You’re the one that’s enforcing the laws at the polling place.”
Correction: The deadline to request an absentee ballot by mail is 5 p.m. July 20. A previous St. Louis Public Radio report listed the wrong deadline
Follow Rachel on Twitter: @rlippmann
