Nov. 3 will be unlike any other Election Day. New rules for have granted voters more ways than ever to cast a ballot 鈥� and raised about election integrity and to the vote-by-mail policies. Officials predict an unprecedented turnout in Missouri, which as of Oct. 2 has to the rolls since 2016.
罢丑别谤别鈥檚 on the 2020 ballot than selecting our next president, and 漏 2024 外网天堂 is here to help you make informed decisions on all the key races and issues this election.
Have a question about a particular race? Confused by the new rules on voting? Email us at electionday@stlpublicradio.org
How to vote in 2020
Missouri has several options for people who want to vote early or from home. Mail-in voters should send ballots to their county clerk or board of elections office no later than Oct. 27. Elections officials must have mail-in ballots by 7 p.m. on Nov. 3, Election Day.
Illinois voters who want to vote early can do so in person at a local election authority or satellite location until Nov. 2. Voters looking to avoid the polls have until Oct. 26 . Unlike in Missouri, voters do not need to list an excuse for why they cannot vote in person on Election Day or have a notary sign their ballot. Illinois law requires election authorities to count all ballots that are postmarked Nov. 3 at the latest.
Missouri Statewide Races
Missouri Governor
The Mike Parson-Nicole Galloway showdown is one of the few governor鈥檚 races in the country seen as competitive, and both candidates have benefited from their party鈥檚 national governors associations pumping in millions of dollars. Parson, a Republican, took over the state鈥檚 top office in 2018 after Eric Greitens鈥� Galloway has served as the state鈥檚 auditor since 2015.
- Parson Touts His Record In Bid For A Full Term As Governor
- Politically Speaking: Gov. Mike Parson On His Bid For A Full Term
- St. Louis on the Air: Auditor Nicole Galloway Makes Her Case To Be Governor
Missouri Lieutenant Governor
Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe served as a state senator in mid-Missouri for seven years until 2018, when Gov. Parson appointed Kehoe to succeed him in the job. Parson then moved into the governor鈥檚 office after Greitens resigned. He faces Democrat Alissia Canady, who has served four years on the city council in Kansas City. This is the first statewide contest for either Canady or Kehoe.
Missouri Attorney General
Republican Eric Schmitt was appointed state attorney general by Parson in 2019, replacing Josh Hawley, who was elected to the U.S. Senate. Schmitt had been serving as the state treasurer prior to the appointment and has served two terms as a state senator, representing parts of southwest St. Louis County. Democrat Rich Finneran served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in St. Louis, where he handled some of the largest financial fraud cases ever prosecuted in the Eastern District of Missouri.
Missouri Treasurer
Scott Fitzpatrick has been Missouri鈥檚 state treasurer since January 2019, when Parson appointed him to that role after Schmitt was appointed attorney general. Fitzpatrick, a Republican, had previously served six years in the Missouri House representing counties in the southwestern corner of the state. Democrat Vicki Englund has twice represented portions of south St. Louis County in the Missouri House. Englund, a graduate of Lindbergh High School, has also served on the Lindbergh School Board.
Missouri Secretary of State
Jay Ashcroft, a Republican, is seeking a second term as Missouri Secretary of State. He faces Democrat Yinka Faleti, who stepped down as director of the nonprofit Forward Through Ferguson to campaign for office.
Missouri Ballot Issues
Amendment 1: Term Limits
Amendment 1 is a proposed that would limit the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general and state auditor to two terms in office. Currently, the governor and state treasurer are the only statewide positions subject to these limits.
Amendment 3: Repealing 'Clean Missouri'
Missouri voters in 2018 overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment known as 鈥淐lean Missouri鈥� that included state redistricting and ethics changes. Under Clean Missouri, a demographer would draw House and Senate maps 鈥� with an emphasis on partisan fairness and competitiveness. Republican state lawmakers didn鈥檛 agree with voters and in May approved a referendum that would repeal the Clean Missouri redistricting system if a majority of voters support Amendment 3.
- Explaining Amendment 3: Missouri Voters Will Again Decide How Their State House And Senate Maps Are Drawn
- Missouri Farm Bureau Chief Blake Hurst Makes Case For Amendment 3Leader Of Campaign To Defeat Amendment 3 Speaks Out
- Pro & Con: Amendment 3 Has Missouri Voters Back To The Drawing Board On Legislative Districts
Illinois Ballot Issues
Amendment 1: Illinois Fair Tax
Illinois鈥� so-called Fair Tax amendment would allow state lawmakers to increase taxes incrementally on those who earn $250,000 or more annually. The proposal itself doesn鈥檛 change the income tax rate but instead permits state lawmakers to remove a mandated 4.95% flat tax from the state constitution. If voters approve the amendment, it would clear the way for a graduated tax law Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed in June 2019.
Key St. Louis-Area Congressional Races
Missouri 1st Congressional District
Cori Bush toppled a family dynasty when she bested U.S. Rep. Lacy Clay in August's Democratic primary. Clay and his father, Bill Clay, had represented Missouri's 1st Congressional District, which includes much of St. Louis and parts of north St. Louis County, for more than 50 years. Bush faces two candidates, Republican nominee Anthony Rogers and Libertarian nominee Alex Furman, who have failed to mount formidable campaigns in the Democratic stronghold district. If Bush wins in November, she will be Missouri's first Black woman elected to Congress.
Missouri 2nd Congressional District
Democratic turnout in U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner鈥檚 district has been steadily increasing since her reelection in 2014. Democrats have identified the seat as one of their top targets in November, and the now lists the race for the district as a tossup. Democratic state Sen. Jill Schupp faces the four-term Republican to represent portions of St. Louis, St. Charles and Jefferson counties in Congress.
- Analysis: Trump Fatigue Could Spur Realignment In Traditionally Republican Parts Of St. Louis County
- Politically Speaking: Congresswoman Ann Wagner On Her Nationally Watched Bid For Reelection
Illinois 13th Congressional District
Republican Rep. Rodney Davis defeated Democratic challenger Betsy Dirksen-Londrigan by just 2,000 votes in 2016. The 2020 contest is a rematch between the candidates for Illinois鈥� 13th Congressional District. The district includes parts of Madison, Jersey and Bond counties in the Metro East, as well as areas near Springfield, Bloomington-Normal and Champaign-Urbana.
- Illinois鈥� 13th District Congressional Race Is Nearly Identical To 2018
- Politically Speaking: Betsy Dirksen-Londrigan Discusses Why She鈥檚 Running Again In Illinois鈥� 13 Congressional District
- Politically Speaking: U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis On Health Care And Other Issues In Illinois鈥� 13th Congressional Race
Key Missouri Statehouse Contests
1st Senate District
The seat represents parts of unincorporated south St. Louis County, Crestwood, Maplewood and Webster Groves. Republican candidate David Lenihan faces Democratic state Rep. Doug Beck in what is widely seen as one of the more competitive statehouse races in Missouri.
15th Senate District
The district takes in portions of south central and southwest St. Louis County. The Democratic challenger, state Rep. Deb Lavender, is squaring off against Manchester Republican Andrew Koenig.
23rd Senate District
Republican state Sen. Bill Eigel is running for a second term against Democrat Richard Orr. The contest is a rematch of 2016, when Eigel bested Orr by about 20 percentage points. The district includes eastern parts of St. Charles County.
Local St. Louis-Area Contests
St. Louis County Executive
St. Louis County Executive Sam Page, a Democrat, runs for his office for the first time, against Republican Paul Berry III.
St. Louis County Council
The most competitive St. Louis County Council race in November is in the 6th District, which takes in portions of south county that include Affton, Lemay and Bella Villa. Sitting Councilman Ernie Trakas, a Republican, faces Missouri Rep. Bob Burns, a Democrat.
St. Louis Circuit Attorney
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner soundly defeated her Democratic primary challenger, Mary Pat Carl, in August and now seeks to retain her job as the city鈥檚 top prosecutor against Republican Daniel Zdrodowski.
St. Louis: Proposition 1
St. Louis voters will choose whether to let most city employees live outside its boundaries. The policy change, if passed, would not apply to elected officials and high-level mayoral appointees.
St. Louis: Proposition D
City voters in November will decide whether to implement a nonpartisan election system. If Proposition D passes, St. Louis will overhaul its primary process so that voters could choose any and all candidates they approve of for a given office. Then, in the general election, the top two vote-getters for that office would compete in a runoff.
- Proposition D Seeks To Remake St. Louis Elections
- Pro & Con: Prop D Would Transform St. Louis Politics. The Question Is How
St. Louis: Proposition R
More money will go toward early childhood education and services if St. Louis voters approve a 6-cent property tax rate increase. The 6 cents translates to $22.80 more in property taxes for a home worth $200,000. It would raise an estimated $2.3 million annually to go toward the St. Louis Mental Health Board鈥檚 Community Children鈥檚 Services Fund.
- Prop R Seeks To Increase Taxes To Support St. Louis Early Childhood Education
- St. Louis on the Air: Prop R Would Increase Property Taxes To Fund Early Childhood Education
Answering your ballot and election questions:
I am confused about Proposition T in St. Louis. What would it do?
The ballot wording for confused some city voters so much that the recommended voting against it for the 鈥渞idiculous phrasing鈥� alone. Proposition T would update the tax code to add fiber network providers to the telecommunications category, which would change how they鈥檙e taxed. Right now, fiber networks pay an annual fee of $2.20 per linear foot of fiber; If Prop T passes, fiber networks will pay a 7.5% gross-receipts tax. Supporters of the proposition hope it will incentivize fiber network providers to expand services here. There is no organized opposition to Prop T, but detractors say the tax break would allow companies to pass the cost off to customers.
Can鈥檛 find what you鈥檙e looking for?
Have a question about a particular race? Confused by the new rules on voting? Email us at electionday@stlpublicradio.org, or submit your question in the box below.