A record number of absentee and mail-in ballots - 80,000 - were received by St. Louis County prior to the primary election and ballot initiative vote, according to officials. And, across Missouri, an estimated 226,000 voters requested absentee ballots, though not all would have returned them.
Under legislation, to run until the end of the year, most elderly people were able to mail in votes without notary requirements, while other sections of the population were allowed to do so if notarized.
Election watchers did flag up various issues, including mistakes made by voters in signing envelopes. Some were unable to solve the issue and did not feel safe travelling to vote in person, or were unable to, Nancy Miller, co-president of the League of Women Voters of Metro St. Louis, told the Washington Post.
“People who were very old did not drive or did not have a family member available, to take them up to remedy whatever they had not done correctly,” Miller told the newspaper. “It was very frustrating because you really didn’t have a good solution for them.”
She added that the county is contemplating a redesign for the November election.
The League of Women Voters was deputized by the county to contact voters whose ballots were rejected and give them an opportunity to visit the county office in person to verify their identity or give them the option to vote in person on Tuesday
In a statement, St. Louis County Elections Director Eric Fey said that as of election day, officials had received 81,000 absentee or mail in ballots. But Fey also added that in person voting also increased.
Election workers in the St. Louis area reported three to four times as many absentee ballots than previous years.
Miller also raised the issue of delays in the Postal Service with the mail taking up to 24 days to arrive back at the county election board, compared with up to 10 days in previous years.