JEFFERSON CITY — A Cole County judge struck down key elements of a Republican-led “voter integrity” law Wednesday as unconstitutional and vague, setting up a possible appeal or further legislative action.

Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem upheld a law that requires voters to present government-issued photo identification for voting.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A law requiring Missouri voters to show government-issued photo identification to cast regular ballots will stand after a lower-court judge found it constitutional Tuesday.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced that a state law requiring a photo ID to vote was upheld in a court ruling on Monday.

The leader of Planned Parenthood Great Plains says the move is a ploy to prevent a Jackson County judge from potentially knocking down other abortion restrictions. Andrew Bailey says his office will continue to enforce laws requiring parental consent and outlawing coercion.

Pension systems for Missouri sheriffs and prosecuting attorneys raised concerns when they contributed to a campaign for Amendment 6 in October.

A Cole County judge called requirements for obtaining photo identification "generalized grievances shared by the population as a whole."

The statement by House Majority Leader Jon Patterson came as he tries to defuse a challenge for speaker from his right flank.

Missouri lawmakers passed legislation in 2022 that established a photo ID requirement at the polls. The NAACP and voting rights group had sued, arguing that its intention was to disenfranchise large groups of people.

A Missouri state law requiring a photo ID to vote will remain intact. Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem ruled Monday that a lawsuit challenging the photo ID requirement lacks standing. In his ruling, Beetem said the individual plaintiffs did not provide “sufficient evidence” that they are harmed by the law’s voter ID provisions.

JEFFERSON CITY — A Republican-backed law requiring Missouri voters to present a photo ID at their polling places survived a second court challenge Monday. The $570 million project, which received incentives Tuesday from both the city and state, has strong backing from the federal government.

It was another Sunday morning of sometimes heated but always civil political debate on Hancock and Kelley for Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024.