EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
and is intended to be omitted in the law.
SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 774
102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR GANNON.
4336S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal section 115.127, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to local
election candidate filing dates, with an effective date.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 115.127, RSMo, is repealed and one new 1
section enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as section 115.127, 2
to read as follows:3
115.127. 1. Except as provided in subsection 4 of 1
this section, upon receipt of notice of a special election 2
to fill a vacancy submitted pursuant to subsection 2 of 3
section 115.125, the election authority shall cause legal 4
notice of the special election to be published in a 5
newspaper of general circulation in its jurisdiction. The 6
notice shall include the name of the officer or agency 7
calling the election, the date and time of the election, the 8
name of the office to be filled and the date by which 9
candidates must be selected or filed for the office. Within 10
one week prior to each special election to fill a vacancy 11
held in its jurisdiction, the election authority shall cause 12
legal notice of the election to be published in two 13
newspapers of different political faith and general 14
circulation in the jurisdiction. The legal notice shall 15
include the date and time of the election, the name of the 16
officer or agency calling the election and a sample ballot. 17
If there is only one newspaper o f general circulation in the 18 SB 774 2
jurisdiction, the notice shall be published in the newspaper 19
within one week prior to the election. If there are two or 20
more newspapers of general circulation in the jurisdiction, 21
but no two of opposite political faith, th e notice shall be 22
published in any two of the newspapers within one week prior 23
to the election. 24
2. Except as provided in subsections 1 and 4 of this 25
section and in sections 115.521, 115.549 and 115.593, the 26
election authority shall cause legal no tice of each election 27
held in its jurisdiction to be published. The notice shall 28
be published in two newspapers of different political faith 29
and qualified pursuant to chapter 493 which are published 30
within the bounds of the area holding the election. If 31
there is only one so -qualified newspaper, then notice shall 32
be published in only one newspaper. If there is no 33
newspaper published within the bounds of the election area, 34
then the notice shall be published in two qualified 35
newspapers of different political faith serving the area. 36
Notice shall be published twice, the first publication 37
occurring in the second week prior to the election, and the 38
second publication occurring within one week prior to the 39
election. Each such legal notice shall inc lude the date and 40
time of the election, the name of the officer or agency 41
calling the election and a sample ballot; and, unless notice 42
has been given as provided by section 115.129, the second 43
publication of notice of the election shall include the 44
location of polling places. The election authority may 45
provide any additional notice of the election it deems 46
desirable. 47
3. The election authority shall print the official 48
ballot as the same appears on the sample ballot, and no 49
candidate's name or ballot issue which appears on the sample 50 SB 774 3
ballot or official printed ballot shall be stricken or 51
removed from the ballot except on death of a candidate or by 52
court order, but in no event shall a candidate or issue be 53
stricken or removed from the ballot less than eight weeks 54
before the date of the election. 55
4. In lieu of causing legal notice to be published in 56
accordance with any of the provisions of this chapter, the 57
election authority in jurisdictions which have less than 58
seven hundred fifty registered voters and in which no 59
newspaper qualified pursuant to chapter 493 is published, 60
may cause legal notice to be mailed during the second week 61
prior to the election, by first class mail, to each 62
registered voter at the voter's voting address. All such 63
legal notices shall include the date and time of the 64
election, the location of the polling place, the name of the 65
officer or agency calling the election and a sample ballot. 66
5. If the opening date for filing a declaration of 67
candidacy for any office in a political subdivision or 68
special district is not required by law or charter, the 69
opening filing date shall be 8:00 a.m., the [seventeenth] 70
sixteenth Tuesday prior to the election. If the closing 71
date for filing a declaration of candi dacy for any office in 72
a political subdivision or special district is not required 73
by law or charter, the closing filing date shall be 5:00 74
p.m., the [fourteenth] thirteenth Tuesday prior to the 75
election, or if the thirteenth Tuesday prior to the elect ion 76
is a state or federal holiday, the closing filing date shall 77
be 5:00 p.m. on the next day that is not a state or federal 78
holiday. The political subdivision or special district 79
calling an election shall, before the [seventeenth] 80
sixteenth Tuesday, prior to any election at which offices 81
are to be filled, notify the general public of the opening 82 SB 774 4
filing date, the office or offices to be filled, the proper 83
place for filing and the closing filing date of the 84
election. Such notification may be accom plished by legal 85
notice published in at least one newspaper of general 86
circulation in the political subdivision or special district. 87
6. Except as provided for in sections 115.247 and 88
115.359, if there is no additional cost for the printing or 89
reprinting of ballots or if the candidate agrees to pay any 90
printing or reprinting costs, a candidate who has filed for 91
an office or who has been duly nominated for an office may, 92
at any time after the certification of the notice of 93
election required in s ubsection 1 of section 115.125 but no 94
later than 5:00 p.m. on the eighth Tuesday before the 95
election, withdraw as a candidate pursuant to a court order, 96
which, except for good cause shown by the election authority 97
in opposition thereto, shall be freely given upon 98
application by the candidate to the circuit court of the 99
area of such candidate's residence. 100
Section B. Section A of this act shall become 1
effective January 1, 2025. 2