Voters to receive new ID cards

Registered voters in Cape Girardeau County will receive new identification cards within the next few days as officials work to verify voting lists.

Approximately 46,000 yellow cards will be mailed to the addresses listed on registration rolls, County Clerk Rodney Miller said. Of that number, he said he expects about 8,000 to 10,000 will be returned because the voter has moved.

A returned card doesn't mean the voter is dropped from registration lists, Miller said. "We can't take them off until they haven't voted in two federal elections."

Causing headaches

But failing to notify Miller's office of a change of address could cause headaches on election day. A voter who arrives at a polling place without a new card will be asked to verify their address. Voters who have moved could be sent to another voting location, he said.

"We'll send you with a yellow slip to vote in the proper precinct," he said.

To avoid problems, Miller asks that voters file a change of address with the clerk's office at 44 N. Lorimier in Cape Girardeau, at the county administration building in Jackson, at the Cape Girardeau and Riverside Regional libraries or at motor vehicle license bureaus.

The voter identification cards will be valid until replaced or until the Missouri Legislature passes a pending bill to require identifcation with a picture to vote, Miller said.

New requirements for identification are unlikely for the Aug. 8 primary, Miller said. And if the bill passes, he said, the best scenario is for it to take effect after the November election, he said.

"People are not going to be prepared for that," he said. "I think it will really cause some issues in November."

rkeller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126