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Voters May Need to Check Poll Locations

Sign on the window primary day (February 27, 2007) at the former polling place at Rockhurst College, 54th and Troost Avenue.
(photo credit: Sylvia Maria Gross)
Sign on the window primary day (February 27, 2007) at the former polling place at Rockhurst College, 54th and Troost Avenue.

By Steve Bell

Kansas City, MO – Many Kansas City area voters will be voting in unfamiliar poll locations in Tuesday's elections. Cash-strapped election boards will be operating fewer polling places than in the November general election, leading to some concerns about hurried voters who did not read their mail notifications of the fact showing up at the wrong place to vote.

The Kansas City Board of Election Commissioners will have 22 percent fewer polling locations than in November, affecting 35,000 registered voters. Director Ray James says those voters were notified by letter, but if the letter is lost or was not read, locations can be verified on the Internet if the voter knows the ward and precinct number. Residents can check the poll log under Election Information on the KCEB website.

Those who don't know their ward and precinct numbers can get that information (a four digit number in which the first two numbers are the ward and the last two are the precinct) by entering their last name and street name in fields at the bottom left of the kceb home page. However, the polling place information on the resulting form may not apply for this week's election. To confirm whether there has been a change, the voter still needs to check the poll log under Election Information. (The direct link is to the poll log can be found here).

An even greater number of polling place locations have changed in Johnson County. Commissioner Brian Newby says only about 20 percent of the locations used in November will be open this week. Newby doesn't expect much confusion because he says voters were notified with a distinctive green post-card designed to get their attention. Johnson Countians who are uncertain about where to vote can get the information by going to the Johnson County Election Office website and entering the voter's name and date of birth.

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