Byers' Beat is a weekly column written by the I-Team's Christine Byers, who has covered public safety in St. Louis for 15 years. It is intended to offer context and analysis to the week's biggest crime stories and public safety issues.
ST. LOUIS — Gary Stoff has been the Republican Director of the St. Louis City Board of Election Commissioners for 20 years and says he hasn’t ever seen his office have to keep up with the pace of St. Louis politics quite like this.
Five aldermanic leaders have resigned so far this year.
Two cited conflict of interest reasons for their resignations earlier this year -- 11th Ward Alderperson Sarah Wood Martin and 28th Ward Alderperson Heather Navarro.
Three stepped down following federal indictments for fraud and bribery charges – including Board of Alderman President Lewis Reed, 21st Alderman John Collins-Muhammed and 22nd Ward Alderman Jeffrey Boyd.
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There was also a city-wide special election in April for Proposition R.
That means Stoff and company have been a lot busier than usual these days, planning special elections to plug the holes left on the Board of Aldermen.
“We run elections, that's our job, that's our business, we love doing it,” he said. “I don't know that we like doing so many on the heels of each other, particularly under the circumstances of some of them.
“That's regrettable, not so much from an election authority standpoint, but from a standpoint of being a resident of the city of Saint Louis. But we're happy to do our business and we will conduct these elections like we conduct our elections in a very open and transparent manner.”
So, how much is all of these extra elections costing taxpayers?
Stoff estimates it to be about $800,000 in unexpected election costs so far this year.
Here’s how it all breaks down.
The city-wide election for Prop R cost about $353,000, Stoff said.
Ward elections
Collins-Muhammed resigned within a time frame that allowed Stoff and staff to fold a special election to replace him into an already planned August primary, so the cost to modify ballots in his ward to include candidates for his replacement are “minimal,” Stoff said.
But Boyd, Wood Martin and Navarro resigned outside of the window that would have allowed the Board of Elections to fold their special elections into that primary, Stoff said.
Special elections to replace aldermen range in cost from $25,000 to $30,000, Stoff said.
Voters in St. Louis have so far had to multiply that by three.
“This is not meant as a criticism of their decisions to step down at all, but timing becomes pretty important,” Stoff said.
Board of Alderman president
The city-wide special election to replace Board of Alderman President Lewis Reed could cost anywhere between $350,000 to $450,000, Stoff said.
“It all depends on the number of poll workers we will need, voter turnout and other factors,” he said.
In St. Louis, voters passed a proposition in 2020 creating run-off elections, which means voters can vote for multiple candidates.
The two who get the most votes then advance to the primary.
The special run-off election to name a new President of the Board of Alderman is now set for Sept. 13.
So far, only two have announced their candidacy – Megan Green and Jack Coatar.
Should they be the only ones on that run-off election ballot, they will also be the names on the primary ballot in the General Election scheduled for Nov. 8.
And, should one of them win, there will be another vacancy to fill in their respective ward.
Green represents the 15th Ward. Coatar, the 7th Ward.
The timing in those cases will work best for taxpayers, Stoff said.
That election will fall within 180 days of the General Municipal Election next April. So, the cost to modify ballots in the ward left vacant should one of them win will be “minimal,” Stoff said – just like it was for Collins-Muhammed’s ward.
Where is all the money to hold the special elections going to come from?
“The city does have some discretionary income available for emergencies that occur,” Stoff said.
Still, he says, he’s never quite seen anything like this.