Missouri Association of County Clerks Archives

Dozens of Missouri counties have purchased pens for each voter on Tuesday, because of COVID worries

October 29, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Southwest Missouri’s Greene County is among the growing number of counties that have purchased pens for each voter in their county for Tuesday, due to COVID reasons.

Lincoln County Clerk Crystal Hall, the Missouri Association of County Clerks president, tells Missourinet that dozens of Missouri counties have purchased pens for their voters on Tuesday. The reason is so each voter has their own voting pen that no one else has touched on Tuesday.

Greene County Clerk Shane Schoeller, a former Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem, says his office has purchased 150,000 pens. Greene County, which includes Springfield, is one of the largest counties in the state.

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office distributed $4.5 million this year to local election authorities, to provide funding for them to meet their jurisdiction’s individual needs. Greene and Lincoln counties used some of their funding for the pens. Other counties have used their funds for additional personal protective equipment (PPE), due to COVID.

Secretary Ashcroft and his staff have delivered about 17,000 face masks, 17,000 face shields and 500 gallons of sanitizer to clerks across the state.

The Secretary of State’s office says more than 628,000 mail-in and absentee ballots have been returned to local election authorities, as of Tuesday.

Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on election day, which is Tuesday.

Missouri county clerks focusing on PPE for November election (AUDIO)

October 23, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

County clerks across Missouri have been gearing up for the November 3rd presidential election, with some hiring temporary workers to handle the influx of absentee and mail-in ballots.

Missouri Association of County Clerks president Crystal Hall, who serves as the clerk in eastern Missouri’s Lincoln County, says most clerks have enough poll workers and staffers.

“There’s not one county that is in desperate need that I’m aware of that haven’t been able to find the staffing that they need for the election,” Hall says.

Missouri’s secretary of state says a combined total of about 424,000 absentee and mail-in ballots have been received by local election authorities.

Ms. Hall is thanking Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft for delivering personal protective equipment (PPE) this year to all 116 election jurisdictions. Ashcroft’s office also distributed about $4.5 million this year to local election authorities, to provide funding for them to meet their jurisdiction’s individual needs.

Hall has purchased special pens for each registered voter in her county, for COVID reasons.

“So instead of having that one pen that’s hanging on the chain that everybody that comes in there (clerk’s office) touches, you’re going to have your own pen that no one else has touched,” says Hall.

Hall also tells Missourinet that FFA high school students in Lincoln County will be cleaning machines all day long, to keep voters safe in November.

Secretary Ashcroft and his staff have delivered about 17,000 face masks, 17,000 face shields and 500 gallons of sanitizer to the clerks across the state.

Fast-growing Lincoln County is located just north of St. Charles County. Towns include Troy, Elsberry and Foley. There is no mask mandate in Lincoln County, so Hall is encouraging poll workers to wear a mask. Her staff has also installed plexiglass barriers between voters and election workers.

The county clerks association says you can expect long lines at the polls for the November election. Ms. Hall says while election judges and pollworkers are paid, they’re essentially volunteers. She notes many are elderly and will be working long hours on election day, from 6 a.m. until at least 7 p.m.

“They’re working through this because they care about our community and our country, and they’re doing their patriotic duty to help,” Hall says, urging voters to be patient and kind.

If voters are in line by 7 p.m. on election night, they are still allowed to vote.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with Lincoln County Clerk Crystal Hall, who’s president of the Missouri Association of County Clerks. The interview was recorded on October 21, 2020: