Absentee voting is underway in Cole County, and election officials anticipate a return to past practices as COVID-19 voting exceptions expired at the end of 2020.
Cole County Clerk Steve Korsmeyer said during a News Tribune Virtual Coffee with the Editor event last week that he anticipates about a 10 percent voter turnout April 6, in line with past municipal elections.
Korsmeyer took several questions from area residents, including on the changes in voting processes from the November general election. For the 2020 election, the state expanded absentee ballot access for voters at higher risk of being severely sickened by the coronavirus, but those changes were not permanent and will not apply in April.
Those who will not be able to vote at their polling place on Election Day should apply for an absentee ballot as soon as possible so ballots have enough time to get to the Cole County Clerk's Office by 7 p.m. April 6.
The deadline to mail a voter an absentee ballot is 5 p.m. March 24.
The deadline to register to vote in the April 6 election is 5 p.m. March 10.
The April 6 ballot will include several municipal and school board races throughout Cole County.
In Jefferson City, the ballot will include elections for City Council, municipal judge and prosecutor.
The Jefferson City Board of Education has two seats open, as does the Blair Oaks R-2 Board of Education.
Cole County voters will be asked whether the county's half-cent sales tax for capital improvements should be renewed for another five years.
In Centertown, the ballot will include three Board of Trustee seats. In Russellville, two seats are open on the Board of Aldermen, and two seats are open on the Lohman Board of Aldermen. In St. Martins, two aldermen seats are open as is the mayor's seat. In St. Thomas, the ballot will include two spots on the City Council. Two seats are open on the Taos City Council, and two seats are open on the Wardsville Board of Trustees.
The Cole County R-1 Board of Education has two seats available, as does the Cole County R-5 Board of Education.
The Osage Fire Protection District has two seats open on the Board of Directors. The Regional West Fire Protection District has one seat open on the Board of Directors, while the Russellville-Lohman Fire Protection District has one six-year term open and one two-year term open.
Proposition 1 asks voters in the Russelleville-Lohman Fire Protection District whether to authorize a 27-cent levy per $100 of assessed valuation for the district.
Absentee voting can be done 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Cole County Clerk's Office on the second floor of the Cole County Courthouse Annex, 311 E. High St. in Jefferson City, through April 5.
To register to vote, update your address or apply for an absentee ballot, Cole County residents should visit colecounty.org/clerk.