The right to vote remains the most valued privilege in our country. Voting is our way of expressing satisfaction or dissatisfaction with public officials and issues. For a more detailed story, see our why vote page.
This page gives an overview of voting requirements on the Missouri side of the St. Louis metro area. The deadline to register to vote for the April 2025 municipal elections is March 12. No-excuse, in-person absentee voting is available at every local election authority. Find nonpartisan information on what's on your ballot at VOTE411.org/lwvmo.
Jump to: Who Can Vote, When and Where to Register, Check Your Voter Registration, Be an Informed Voter, Vote Absentee in Person, Vote Absentee by Mail, In-Person Voting, Rides to Polls, Voter ID, Voters with Disabilities, Hospitalized Voters, Voting with Past or Present Justice System Involvement, Military Voters, Non-English Speaker Flyers, Change Name or Address, Add or Change Party Affiliation, Contact Information for Election Boards and County Clerks
WHO CAN VOTE
Any U.S. Citizen who is a resident of Missouri may register to vote when at least 17 ½ years old and may vote when at least 18 years old. A photo ID issued by Missouri or the federal government is needed to vote.
You must register to vote using your current address. Registration is permanent as long as you vote, report name and address changes, and re-register if you move to a new voting jurisdiction.
WHEN AND WHERE TO REGISTER
In order to vote, you must register in the county where you reside. (However, as we explain below, if you move within Missouri and forget to change your address, you can do so at the office of your election authority and vote there.)
You may register anytime during regular office hours at any registration location.
Remember that you must be registered by the 4th Wednesday before an election.
You may register at election authorities (links below), most libraries, city halls, state offices and many schools.
You may register online or by mail through the Missouri Secretary of State website. You would need to fill out the online form on a tablet that allows you to sign your signature. The touch screen on an iPad works.
CHECK YOUR VOTER REGISTRATION
If you are not sure if you are registered in the correct county, or in the City of St. Louis, the Missouri Secretary of State website provides this handy way to check your voter registration.
BE AN INFORMED VOTER!
The right to vote brings with it the responsibility to learn about the candidates and the issues.
★ Study the League Voters Guide on vote411.org, where you can see candidate responses to a League questionnaire and a League summary of what ballot measures mean and what proponents and opponents of them say. Many local election authorities also mail sample ballots or publish them online.
★ Attend candidate meetings and forums, many of which are moderated and staffed by League members, or attend League Speakers Bureau presentations about issues or election processes
★ Read a variety of online sources, newspapers and news magazines
★ Contact campaign and party offices and websites
★ Consult issue-related interest groups
★ Call the League of Women Voters office, 314-961-6869. Office hours are 9:30 am-3:30 pm Monday-Friday. If you call when the office is closed, leave a message and we will return your call as soon as possible.
HOW TO VOTE ABSENTEE IN PERSON
Go to the Board of Elections or County Clerk’s office during regular hours as early as 42 days before the scheduled election.
A new period of no-excuse absentee voting starts two weeks before the election for voters with a photo ID. Some offices offer satellite voting sites, extended hours and/or are open on Saturdays prior to the election.
HOW TO VOTE ABSENTEE BY MAIL
In general to vote absentee by mail in the future, go to the Secretary of State website or your local election authority’s website to download, print and mail an absentee ballot request application form. You must mail the completed application to your local election authority, linked below. You must provide a reason to request a mail-in ballot. These are acceptable reasons:
★ Incapacity or confinement due to illness or physical disability
★ Expecting to be absent on Election Day
★ Serving as an election worker, first responder, healthcare worker or member of law enforcement
★ Prevented by religious beliefs from going to the polls on election day
★ Being incarcerated
★ Active-duty military personnel or close family members living with them
★ Missouri citizens living outside the U.S.
The form that requests the ballot does not need to be notarized. Note the small print at the bottom of the request form tells you that if you have not voted in person in this election authority, you must include a copy of a valid ID with your request for an absentee ballot.
Expect to receive the ballot a few weeks before the election. Complete the ballot and put it in the enclosed envelope. Verify the address where indicated and sign the envelope. Look for a notice indicating situations when your signature needs to be notarized. Return by mail or in person to the election authority before 7 p.m. on election day. A close relative may apply in person on your behalf at the Board of Elections or ask the County Clerk’s office to send you a ballot.
Note that the envelope for a ballot completed by a voter without a health excuse must be notarized. Notaries typically are found at banks, post offices, and libraries. The League is happy to offer free notary services at our office, but please call ahead at 314-961-6869 to make sure that a notary will be in the office at the time you want to come.
You may want to view the Missouri Secretary of State’s latest guidance on absentee voting.
IN-PERSON VOTING
Polling places are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on election days. Prior to the day of election, you may request time off from your employer. Currently both St. Louis City and St. Louis County have implemented a “vote anywhere” system allowing you to vote at any polling place within your county or city of residence.
Prior to the day of election, you may request time off from your employer to vote if you do not have a 3-hour period between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. in which to vote.
If you think you may forget to vote, or would like to have advance notice of when an election is coming so you can make a plan to vote, you can sign up for the League of Women Voters voting reminders.
RIDES TO POLLING PLACES
The A. Philip Randolph Institute often provides free rides to polling places in St. Louis City and County on Election Day. For the November 2024 election, they also gave rides to satellite voting locations during early voting. Close to an election, interested voters should watch this website to verify this information or call 1-800-562-0411 to schedule a ride.
VOTER IDENTIFICATION
Voters are required to provide ID at the polling place. Missouri House Bill 1878 tightened the ID requirement to vote.
Voters in past elections were allowed to use a variety of forms of identification, such as utility bills or student IDs, but recently the list of permitted IDs has narrowed. For now, plan to bring either an unexpired Missouri driver’s license or government-issued non-driver ID, U.S. passport, or military ID with you.
Voters who don’t bring an acceptable photo ID to the polling place can cast a provisional ballot. Those votes will count if a voter returns to the polling place with ID or if the signature matches the signature(s) in the voter registry. By the way, provisional ballots are not allowed during in-person absentee voting.
The state of Missouri and all fee offices are required to provide a photo ID at no cost to non-drivers who desire the identification for voting and to help provide any underlying documents needed. For current information, visit the Secretary of State website.
The photo ID requirement does not apply to overseas voters, those on active military duty or immediate family members living with them, or voters who are permanently disabled or their caregivers.
VOTERS WITH DISABILITIES
Accommodations are available for voters unable to stand in line or read or mark their ballots. Many polling places are accessible. A ballot can be brought outside the polling place for “Curbside Voting.” Voters may bring someone to assist them in casting a ballot or may request help from a pair of poll workers, one from each party.
Disabled voters may request an absentee ballot for a single election or on a permanent basis. Those on the permanently disabled list will be sent an absentee ballot application before each election and don’t need to have their ballots notarized. For more information on this topic, see our page about Missouri voters with disabilities or our fact sheet developed jointly with Paraquad.
HOSPITALIZED VOTERS
Voters hospitalized after the Wednesday before the election may call their election authority for an absentee ballot or to make special arrangements.
VOTING WITH CURRENT OR RECENT JUSTICE SYSTEM INVOLVEMENT
If convicted of a misdemeanor, the right to vote is lost only while incarcerated. Those convicted of a felony lose their eligibility to vote while incarcerated and while on probation and parole. The right is restored once the person is off state supervision, but he/she must re-register. Those in jail awaiting trial may vote absentee. Those with a Suspended Imposition of Sentence never lose their voting rights. Unless pardoned, anyone convicted of a crime involving voting permanently loses the right to vote. For more details, see our page on Missouri voting for those "off papers" or awaiting trial in jail, which includes a downloadable and printable "off papers" brochure.
HOW TO VOTE IN THE MILITARY
Persons serving in the military and their dependents may register to vote by obtaining Federal Form 76 from their Commanding Officer. This form also serves as a request for an absentee ballot. Mail Form 76 to the Board of Elections or County Clerk for the place of residence from which you want to vote. For more information on this process, and non partisan voting information, military personnel should contact the Unit Voting Assistant Officer.
VOTING INFORMATION IN OTHER LANGUAGES
The Missouri Voter Protection Coalition has produced flyers containing the most information voting information for speakers of languages other than English. Included languages are Spanish, Korean, Telegu, Hindi, Bosnian, Swahili, Chinese, and Arabic.
For a handy summary tool suitable for distribution, see the League's Register and Vote brochure.
CHANGE OF NAME OR ADDRESS
You can go online to change your name or address, or you may update your name and address at the polls on Election Day.
A person who moves to Missouri after registration closes may still vote in federal elections.
HOW TO ADD OR CHANGE PARTY AFFILIATION
Missouri voters are not required to choose a party affiliation. If you choose to add or change your affiliation, you can do so through this location on the Secretary of State's website.
CONTACT INFORMATION FOR ELECTION BOARDS AND CLERKS
St. Louis City Board of Elections, 300 N. Tucker, St. Louis, 63101, 314-622-4336, www.stlelections.com
St. Louis County Board of Elections, 725 Northwest Plaza Drive, St. Ann, 63074, 314-615-8683, www.stlouiscountymovotes.gov
Jefferson County Clerk, 729 Maple St., Hillsboro, 63060, 636-797-5487, www.jeffcomo.org/clerk
Franklin County Clerk, 400 E. Locust, Union, 63084 636-583-6355, www.franklinmo.org
St. Charles County Clerk, 397 Turner Blvd., St. Peters, 63376, 636-949-7550, www.sccmo.org/960/Election-Services
Lincoln County Clerk, 201 Main St., Troy, 63379, 636-528-6300, www.lincolncountymoclerk.gov
Warren County Clerk, 101 Mockingbird Ln, Warrenton, 63383, 636-456-3331, www.warrencountymoclerk.com
St. Francis County Clerk, 1 West Liberty, Suitre 100, Farmington, 63640
Butler County Clerk, 100 N. Main St., Room 202, Poplar Bluff, 63901
Other Local Election Authority Contact Info
ADDITIONAL VOTER INFORMATION
We devote a page in this section to explaining our Get Out the Vote projects and another one to some additional voting information for voters in St. Louis City and County. In addition, you may be interested in some Metro St. Louis League services to voters, including voter registration at your events, printed and online voters guides, and candidate or issue forums. Lastly, popular information on this website is found on a page showing a map of Missouri Congressional districts, plus Missouri Senate and House districts or links to that information.
