Records in Dent County could be broken Nov. 8 during this year’s general election. A scant number of local decisions will take place in the shadow of several high-profile state and national races which are expected to drive up turnout.
Dent County Clerk Angie Curley testing voting equipment at the courthouse Friday to prepare for the Nov. 8 General Election.
Andrew Sheeley
“As long as I’ve been clerk the highest turnout we’ve had is 71.8 in the November 2012 General Election, so I am hoping to at least get 72 percent,” says County Clerk Angie Curley.
Curley says she has ordered extra ballots in case of a record wave, and in fact has more than 100 percent capacity. Absentee voting is also ongoing until Nov. 7, with the clerk’s office being open 8 a.m. to noon Saturday for absentee voters.
“We have already had around 500 absentee ballots turned in,” Curley said.
Curley was busy at work at the courthouse Friday testing election equipment and making preparations. She said she wants to assure voters local elections are secure.
“None of our voting equipment is connected to the internet and nothing we use can be hacked,” Curley says. “Our elections in Missouri are very secure. Here in Dent County, we spend a lot of time, weeks, prior to an election testing equipment to make sure everything is operating properly. We even test the equipment again after the election to make sure. Results are verified by both representatives of the Republican and Democratic parties and a paper record is checked against the digital results. All ballots are also accounted for, even those that aren’t used or are exchanged because of mistakes. We keep a constant count.”
One issue Curley reminds voters to be aware of is that no electioneering is allowed within 25 feet of a polling location. Campaign hats, shirts, buttons or other candidate related items of clothing are not allowed within 25 feet of a polling site.
Another issue Curley, and clerks across Missouri, are raising is State Statute 115.637.14, which stipulates voters are barred from showing other people their ballots with the intent of letting it be known how they voted. With the advent of social media and cell phone cameras, a recent phenomenon has been voters taking pictures of their ballots and posting them to social media, or even tagging the official they voted for in a post. Curley warns those actions are actually a Class 4 election offense misdemeanor and cell phone usage will not be allowed at local polling locations.
The general election brings to an end a blistering year for the clerk’s office as this will be the fourth election they’ve administered in seven months.
Sample ballots are currently available at the clerk’s office for the public. Curley says voters are authorized to bring filled-out sample ballots with them.
Polls will open at 6 a.m. Nov. 8 and remain available until 7 p.m. The Salem News will be reporting results live from the courthouse and posting results once they become available via Facebook and the salemnewsonline.com
John Hewkin has been a sports fan since he was a kid. He’s played, coached and been a fan of sports. I was a sports writer for 15 years before moving back to Missouri, but to this day you will still find me in my man cave a lot of nights and weekends watching something that requires a ball.
