The Missouri 2018 ballot is a monster. So much to vote on, so little time: Candidates, the dreaded judges’ retentions, plus amendments to the Missouri constitution, a slew of ballot initiatives, and—in St. Louis County—several obscure amendments to the charter. We could all use some guidance, and maybe a little coaching, too. Here are links to some articles from Occasional Planet, addressing frequently asked questions about the Missouri 2018 ballot. Not comprehensive, but, we hope, useful.
THE PROPOSITIONS
Missouri Amendment 1: Cleaning up Missouri politics
October 31, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
Sponsors of Missouri Amendment 1—aptly nicknamed Clean Missouri—aims to increase fairness, integrity and transparency in Missouri politics. With the length and complexity of the 2018 midterm ballot, it’s fortunate that this good-government proposal is first on the ballot, because many voters may fall victim to ballot fatigue long before they get to some of the other issues. Read more.
Gas tax [Proposition D] on MO ballot: I voted yes before I knew what I was doing
October 30, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
Proposition D on Missouri’s 2018 midterm ballot asks voters whether to increase the tax on a gallon of gas. Should you vote for it? Good question. If passed, Proposition D would raise the gas tax by a total of 10 cents, over four years. I generally support tax increases, because it’s clear from the necessity of continuous cutbacks in services, Missouri government is not adequately funded. And then I read an op-ed by former Missouri legislator Joan Bray. Read more.
What are these St. Louis County charter amendments about, anyway?
October 24, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
On their 2018 ballots, many voters in St. Louis County may be surprised to encounter a quartet of proposed County charter amendments. Reading them over for the first time, they can seem obscure, and, as a result, voters may opt to skip over them. But don’t. While they may seem obtuse and “inside baseball,” the four proposals are actually worth consideration. And, incredibly, they are bi-partisan, supported by Republican and Democratic council members.
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Bingo amendment on the Missouri midterm ballot
October 22, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
On November 6, 2018, nestled on the ballot between three other amendments to the Missouri Constitution, four statewide propositions and a bunch of local ballot issues, Missouri voters will find a constitutional amendment proposal about Bingo. It’s not a huge issue–a lot of us thought Bingo was settled in the 1980s–but there it is, and rather than be surprised in the polling place, you might as well know about it.
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3 medical marijuana proposals on MO ballot: Compare and contrast
October 14, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
If you’re voting in Missouri on Nov. 6, 2018—and you are, aren’t you?—you’re going to find: not one, not two, but three proposals pertaining to legalizing medical marijuana. If you haven’t thought about them before you get to your polling place, you’re probably going to find them confusing. Each one has a different focus and a different tax rate attached. And you’ll have the opportunity to vote on all three of them.
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THE VOTING PROCESS
Back-stage tour of election headquarters: numbers tell the story
October 28, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
A tour of St. Louis County’s election headquarters reveals lots of interesting facts. Read more.
MO voter ID update: No need for affidavits
October 22, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
The continuing, confusing saga of voter ID requirements in Missouri continues. On Friday, October 19, at 5 pm, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that voters who do not show a photo ID–but who do show a “secondary” form of non-photo ID, should be allowed to vote a regular ballot, without having to sign an affidavit. Bottom line: You can vote without photo ID in Missouri’s November 6 midterm election. Unfortunately, this news comes too late for hundreds of people who have already been trained by county election boards to be pollworkers.
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How do I get a sample ballot in Missouri?
October 21, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
Need a sample ballot? Many Missouri voters are worrying about the 2018 midterm ballot. We’ve been warned: It’s unusually long. It includes a slew of Constitutional amendments, propositions, County charter amendments, retention questions for state judges most of us have never heard of, and, of course, candidates for offices ranging from US Senator to local tax assessor.
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Confuse the Vote: Missouri’s cockamamie Voter ID Mess
October 17, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
Rock the Vote? Dance the Vote? How about Confuse the Vote? That’s the situation surrounding Voter ID in Missouri just three weeks before the November 2018 midterm election.
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Confusing the vote: 2018 midterms edition
September 4, 2018. By Gloria Shur Bilchik
With a few heartening exceptions, the trend in voting rights in America is toward suppression and trickery—with just weeks to go before the crucial 2018 midterm elections. Voting rights in the Trump era is a one-step-forward-two-steps back story. And just when you think you’ve caught up on the news, another state, another county, or another White House authoritarian surprises you with a new wrinkle.
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THE CANDIDATES
MO GOP PAC goes low with scary words and images
October 30, 2018. By Bill Kesler
The Missouri House Republican Campaign Committee (HRCC) seems to have a thing for scary words like socialism, state-controlled healthcare, atheists, liberal professors, progressive and, gasp, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. Read more.
Ann Wagner has support of Sex Trafficking Advocate?
October 26, 2018. By Arthur Lieber
Well, we all make mistakes, but this is a whopper. Congresswoman Ann Wagner (MO-02) thinks that she has made name for herself opposing sex-trafficking. A recent Wagner TV spot seems to indicate an opposite tack. Read more.
Trying to cut through the B.S. in Missouri’s U.S. Senate Race
October 12, 2018. By Arthur Lieber
They’re angry with one another – Claire McCaskill and Josh Hawley, running in the tightly contested U.S. Senate race in Missouri. McCaskill is doggedly pursuing re-election and shows remarkable energy for someone who is 65. Hawley is trying to help Missouri Republicans overcome the stain of their last young knight in shining armor, former Governor Eric Greitens. Let me suggest ways in which at least one candidate, McCaskill could make her campaign more honest, spend far less money, and do the voters a real service.
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Ann Wagner: Missouri Congresswoman in absentia
August 3, 2018. By Reece Ellis
Missouri has produced great people who are a credit to our state and are known for their legacy of public service. Congresswoman Ann Wagner [R-MO CD 2] is not one of those great Missourians. Perhaps there was a time she could’ve been, but the Faustian bargain she has made with Donald Trump has divested her of whatever dignity she could’ve hoped to muster after what was an already lackluster congressional career.
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