REGISTER AND VOTE!

WELCOME TO COLE COUNTY

You are invited to visit my office anytime. Please call 573 634-9101 if you have any questions regarding the elections process in Cole County.

MARVIN REGISTER
COLE COUNTY CLERK

WHO MAY REGISTER?
RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS
WHERE TO REGISTER?
CHANGE OF ADDRESS
CHANGE OF NAME
WHEN DO I VOTE?
WHERE DO I VOTE?
HOW DO I VOTE?
PARTY PREFERENCE
ABSENTEE BALLOTS
VOTING SERVICES FOR ELDERLY, DISABLED AND HANDICAPPED VOTERS

WHO MAY REGISTER?

• 17 1/2 years old
• Citizen of the United States
• Resident of Cole County

If convicted of a felony

• You may register to vote after you have served your entire sentence, including any probation or parole

You may not register to vote if you have been declared incapacitated by a court

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

Missouri has no residency requirements to register, but you must be registered by the 4th Wednesday prior to an election in order to vote in that election. Click here for Registration deadlines.

WHERE TO REGISTER?

• Cole County Clerk’s Office, 311 E. High Street Room 201, Jefferson City, MO
  Office hours are from 
  8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday
• Missouri River Regional Library, 214 Adams Street, Jefferson City, MO.
• Missouri Department of Revenue, 1617 Southridge Dr., Jefferson City, MO.
• Postcard Registration Forms are available throughout Cole County. Call 573 634-9101 for the location nearest you, or click here for a postcard application.

CHANGE OF ADDRESS

If you have moved since you first registered to vote in Cole County, you must file a change of address before you can vote.

Click here to print an address transfer form to mail your change of address to the address below; or fax it to 573 681-9678.

Marvin Register
Cole County Clerk
311 E. High Street Room 201
Jefferson City, MO 65101

CHANGE OF NAME

If you have changed your name, you will need to come by our office and sign a new card.

ELECTIONS

WHEN DO I VOTE?

Click here for election calendar

Missouri has a consolidated election schedule.  Elections may be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of the following months: February, March, April, June, August, November.

• April is the annual School & Municipal Election Day
• August is the Primary Election Day in even numbered years
• November is the General Election Day in even numbered years
• All other days are unscheduled Special Election Days. The County Clerk’s Office will know 10 weeks in advance if an election has been called for a particular date.

Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on election days.

WHERE DO I VOTE?

After you register to vote you will be mailed your voter identification card listing your precinct and polling place. 

The list of precincts and polling places is listed in the News Tribune newspaper the second Wednesday before the election and the Sunday before the election. You also can click here for voting locations.

The publication will also contain a sample ballot of those candidates and/or issues to be voted on at the election. Or, you can click here for a sample ballot.

HOW DO I VOTE?

You must have an updated address on your voter registration before you go to vote.

If you have not filed a change of address by election day, you will need to come by our office before you go to vote. Your address will need to be updated for you can be assigned to the correct polling place for your new address. Or, you can go to your old polling place, tell the election judge that you moved. They will call our office to find out where your new polling place is and they will have you sign an address transfer form and give you a temporary card to take to your new polling place so you can vote.

Take your voter identification card with you to your polling place. If you lose your card, you may request a replacement. If you don’t have your ID card, you will need to show another form of identification in order to vote.

Acceptable forms of identification include:

• Missouri Driver’s License
• Missouri Identification Card
• Social Security Card
• Student Identification Card

Read the sample ballot published in the newspaper before you go to vote. This way you will not be surprised by anything you see on the ballot when you enter the voting booth.

PARTY PREFERENCE

Missouri does not register voters by political party so you will not be asked about any party affiliation when you register, but you may only receive 1 party ballot when you vote at each Primary Election. You must request a party ballot from the election workers when you vote at a Primary Election, but you do not have to choose the same party ballot at subsequent Primaries.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL

573 634-9101 Voter Registration Office

ABSENTEE BALLOTS

You may vote by absentee ballot if you are unable to go to the polls because of:

• temporarily absent from the County on election day
• confinement due to illness or physical disability
• your religious belief
• military service
• incarceration, but have retained voting privileges

You may apply for an absentee ballot through the Elections Division of the Cole County Clerk’s Office.

• The quickest and most efficient way is to apply in person. You will immediately receive your ballot to be voted in the office.
• You may vote in person until 5 p.m. the day before an election.
• If you are confined, call the Elections Office at 573 634-9101 and a bi-partisan team of election workers will deliver your ballot to you.
• You may have your ballot mailed to your address. Call or write for an application to be sent. The deadline for receiving an application for an absentee ballot to be mailed out is 5 p.m. on the Wednesday before an election. All absentee ballots that are mailed by voters must be voted and returned to the Elections Office before the polls close on election day. You will need to sign the envelope in the presence of a Notary Public. Persons with disabilities do not have to have ballots notarized.

Click here for an application for an absentee ballot that you can fill out, print, sign, and mail to our office.

VOTING SERVICES FOR ELDERLY, DISABLED AND HANDICAPPED VOTERS

• You may register to vote by mail or request that deputy registrars register you at home.
• Absentee Balloting in the Elections Office is an option or you may request to have your name added to the permanent absentee application list. Once on the list, you will be sent an application for each election day in the year. You will need to return a completed application for each election in which you wish to vote. Your absentee ballot will be mailed to you. 
• If a voter is blind, he or she may have a person of his or her choosing accompany them to help vote their ballot. Also, a bi-partisan team of election workers may read the ballot to a voter and mark the ballot at the voter’s direction.
• Voting supplies may be brought to a voter at his or her car if he or she is unable to get inside their polling place.
• Persons with disabilities do not have to have ballots notarized.