Submitted by Susette Taylor, Atchison County Clerk

The primary election will be Tuesday, August 4, 2026. The primary election is the process for choosing a political party’s candidates for the general election. Missouri law limits each voter to one political party in the Primary. Most states require that you register to vote by political party to participate in a primary election – that’s where the terms “Registered Democrat” and “Registered Republican” originate. In Missouri, you are not currently required to register to vote by party, but you can only choose the candidates for one political party at a primary election.

The section in Missouri law that requires you to choose a party or vote only on the issues is 115.397 RSMo.

Missouri has never required voters to register to vote by political party, but has required voters to choose only one party in a primary since the establishment of primaries. No government record of your party selection is kept unless you designate it on your registration and then it is put on your voter record. Political parties are allowed to have volunteers collect lists of what ballot each voter chooses.

The following political parties are currently authorized to hold primaries in Missouri: Democrat, Republican, and Libertarian. There are four state Constitutional amendments on the August ballot, so there will be a non-partisan ballot style also. This ballot does not have any candidates on it – only issues.

Non-Partisan Ballot

115.397 – In each primary election, each voter shall be entitled to receive the ballot of one and only one political party, designated by the voter before receiving his/her ballot. Each voter who participates in a party primary shall be entitled to vote on all questions and for any nonpartisan issues submitted by the state at the primary election. Each voter who does not wish to participate in a party primary may vote on all questions and for any nonpartisan candidates or issues submitted by the state, political subdivision or special district at the primary election.

You may view the sample ballot on page 8 in this edition of the Atchison County Mail or on the website at www.acmoelections.org. Please be prepared as you enter the polling location on Tuesday, August 4. You will be required to tell the judges what ballot style you would like from the list above. There are no local contested races. Please remember if there is an issue or race on the ballot that you do not want to vote for, you can leave it blank, and all other votes will be counted.

Absentee voting is open and anyone may go to the Atchison County Clerk’s office at the courthouse and cast their ballot. Anyone who is registered can vote during regular business hours in the clerk’s office through August 4 and the office will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon on Saturday, August 1. The Atchison County Courthouse will serve as your central polling location on election day. The courthouse can also do curbside voting for anyone who has difficulty getting in and out of the polling location now through election day. Call 660-744-6214 Ext. 3 and set up a time.

Susette Taylor, Atchison County Clerk, expressed her thanks to all election judges for their dedication. “Be sure to let them know how much you appreciate their service when you go to the polls on election day.”

The county’s website – acmoelections.org and Facebook page are your trusted sources for accurate election information. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the county clerk at 660-744-6214 Ext. 3.