Small towns could opt out of uncontested elections

Several Cape Girardeau County villages are taking advantage of a change in state law allowing them to forego certain annual elections if there are no contested races.

Gordonville, Oak Ridge, Pocahontas, Allenville and Whitewater have all placed questions on the April ballot asking voters to approve the measure.

The law applies to cities, towns or villages with populations of 1,000 or fewer. It allows them to pass an ordinance, with voter approval, stating no election is required for nonpartisan elections -- which include municipal elections -- "if the number of candidates who have filed for a particular office is equal to the number of positions in that office to be filled by the election." If no election is held, election authorities must publish a notice with the names of the candidates assuming the office.

If voters approve the measure, it would stay in effect for six years. After that, it would head back to the ballot for approval.

If the ordinance was in effect for the April election, the only question that would be awaiting voters in Gordonville, Oak Ridge and Whitewater would be the county use-tax issue. In each village, the number of candidates running for the respective municipal government boards does not exceed the number of positions required to be filled in the election.

No municipal election could result in cost savings for some of the entities. Cape Girardeau County Clerk Kara Clark Summers said election costs vary, depending on the items on the ballot and other factors.

Election costs for Gordonville in 2014 were $284.84 and $519.03 in 2013. Allenville's 2014 election costs were $192.04 and $151.87 in 2013. For Oak Ridge, last year's cost was $211.49, higher than the 2013 cost of $142.52. Election costs for the village of Pocahontas was $246.86 last year, and the village of Whitewater's cost in 2013 was $142.66.

Those numbers, made available by the county clerk's office, do not include the publication costs of the notice of election, which each entity is required to publish in to notify the public of details such as available offices and filing deadlines.

srinehart@semissourian.com

388-3641

Pertinent address:

Gordonville, Mo.

Oak Ridge, Mo.

Pocahontas, Mo.

Allenville, Mo.

Whitewater, Mo.

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Ballot language

*"Shall the Village of _____, Missouri, be authorized to forgo annual elections if the number of candidates who have filed for a particular office is equal to the number of positions in the office to be filled by the election?*"