Whether you want to contact a board member, speak publicly at a meeting or just keep an eye on changes in your district, we’ve updated our guide to what you need to know.
Missouri
The Beacon reports on the Missouri government to help bring depth, nuance and new ideas to our readers about how their tax money gets spent and about laws passed by their elected officials.
Posted inElections
Missouri Amendment 7: Everything you need to know about ranked-choice voting
Voters will be asked this November whether to amend the Missouri Constitution to make it the 11th state to ban ranked-choice voting.
Ranked-choice voting asks voters to rank candidates from favorite to least favorite, rather than requiring them to pick only one candidate. Maine and Alaska have adopted ranked-choice voting for some of their elections. So have cities such as New York City, Minneapolis and Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Posted inState Government
Missouri Amendment 5: Voters can OK or reject a new casino at the Lake of the Ozarks on Nov. 5
Missourians, long restricted to sites along the Missouri or Mississippi rivers for casino gambling, will decide whether to add another river to that list during the Nov. 5 election. Amendment 5 will ask Missouri voters if they want to allow an additional casino on the Osage River, near the Bagnell Dam at the Lake of […]
Posted inState Government
Air conditioning is coming to some Missouri prisons. But it will take years and cost millions
Missouri lawmakers took a step toward improving conditions in some Missouri prisons last year by setting aside millions to install air conditioning in one of the state’s 17 prisons. That cooler air is still a year and a half away. That decision came as global temperatures broke summertime heat records. Prisoner rights advocates celebrated the […]
Posted inState Government
A Missouri panel of lawmakers looks at immigration — and gets pushback
It’s like clockwork each election cycle. Politicians reach for an old playbook, brandishing images from the southern border, claiming that undocumented migrants steal jobs and commit violent crimes at an alarming rate. The intent is to sow fear and misinformation about immigrants for political advantage. During Tuesday’s presidential debate, Donald Trump talked about immigration more […]
Posted inElections
Voters could undo Missouri’s abortion ban: Key things to understanding your vote on Amendment 3
Missourians could be among the nation’s first voters to reverse a near-total abortion ban when they weigh in on Amendment 3 in the Nov. 5 election. Missouri was the first state to enact a near-total ban on abortion in June 2022. Missouri officials signed paperwork triggering the ban to take effect just minutes after the […]
General election 2024: Your guide to the Kansas ballot on Nov. 5
The Beacon’s coverage is here to bring context to this year’s election.
General election 2024: Your guide to Missouri’s ballot on Nov. 5
The Beacon’s coverage is here to bring context to races, amendments and ballot issues.
Posted inElections
What you need to know to vote as a homeless person in Kansas City
Douglas Zaerr has been voting since he turned 18 years old. Now 61, he last cast his vote on the stadium sales tax in April. He was homeless at the time. He found housing recently, but he’d been homeless for much of the past 10 years — and it never stopped him from casting a […]
Posted inElections
Sports betting in Missouri: Everything you need to know about Amendment 2
Missourians could soon legally bet on sports from their own homes — instead of driving to Kansas or Illinois to place bets. Legalizing sports wagering will appear as Amendment 2 on the Nov. 5 general election ballot. Missourians 21 or older would be allowed to bet if it passes. Read the full amendment here. Here’s […]