Will coronavirus outbreak finally convince Missouri lawmakers to allow early voting?

Missouri lawmakers must enable early voting for elections in August and November.

They should do it as quickly as possible so local election boards can prepare to accept more early ballots. The state should also pay the cost of early voting.

Without good reason, Missouri has long resisted allowing early voting, which would give voters the option of casting ballots in person before Election Day or submitting advance ballots by mail without an excuse. Forty states will provide early voting as a convenience for their citizens this year.

Missouri is not among them. Now, that failing isn’t just an inconvenience — it’s a clear threat to public health.

Everyone hopes the coronavirus threat will recede before this year’s elections, but scientists have been clear: The danger will not disappear. Prudent social distancing will still be important. And in a presidential election year, Missouri’s crowded polling stations will be a real threat to transmit disease.

More than 2.7 million Missourians cast presidential ballots in November 2016. Many voters stood in close proximity, stuck in slow-moving lines for hours.

Dealing with that kind of rush will be especially troublesome in 2020, both in Missouri’s August primaries and in the November general election. Many poll workers are older, the people most susceptible to viral infection. Finding enough workers will be even tougher.

Even a slim possibility of contracting COVID-19 could depress turnout, cheating eligible voters out of their right to be heard.

Early voting could reduce some of the risk. “We need to protect and ensure the right of every Missourian the right to vote, regardless of whether the person has job responsibilities, or childcare issues, or the country is facing a global pandemic,” said state Missouri Sen. Lauren Arthur, a Democrat, in an email.

Missouri county clerks Shane Schoeller and Brianna Lennon — one a Republican, the other a Democrat — issued a joint press release Sunday urging the legislature to act.

“Current Missouri law does not proactively serve voters,” they said.

Both urged lawmakers to give election boards flexibility “in the event of a declared emergency.” Early voting should be made permanent, but at an absolute minimum, no-excuse absentee and early voting should be required this year.

How might it work? Kansas provides a good template: Voters can ask for a mail-in ballot for any reason and can either return it in person or by mail. Early in-person voting is allowed up to 20 days before Election Day, or starting the Tuesday before Election Day, depending on the county.

Early voting at satellite locations is permissible. While those polling places are often crowded, they provide some relief from the crush of Election Day itself. In Kansas, more than 450,000 ballots were cast before Election Day in 2016.

Some opponents of early voting claim it harms voters who cast ballots before the end of campaigns — this year’s turbulent Democratic presidential primary, they say, is a good example. While that concern is valid, it doesn’t outweigh the problems that come with forcing everyone to vote on the same day.

There is no legitimate reason to deny Missourians the option to vote early or to cast a no-excuse absentee ballot.

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft has a special responsibility here. He has fiercely rejected claims that he tries to manipulate the state’s election procedures for partisan advantage, and like many Republicans, he has resisted early voting in the past.

Ashcroft now has a chance to prove Missourians’ safety is more important than political ambition. To his credit, he is talking with local election officials about these issues.

Congress may also consider requiring no-excuse mail-in voting, something elections expert Rick Hasen has recommended. The plan has merit, but Missouri should not wait for Washington to act. Instead, state lawmakers should move forward immediately.

Free, fair elections are the centerpiece of representative self-government. A worldwide pandemic will disrupt our lives but should not prevent all voters from being heard this year.

This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 5:00 AM.