Your monthly support provides voters the knowledge they need to make confident decisions at the polls. Donate today.
Missouri St. Louis City and County Merger Initiative (2020)
| Missouri St. Louis City and County Merger Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic County and municipal governance | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
The Missouri St. Louis City and County Merger Initiative was not on the ballot in Missouri as an initiated constitutional amendment on November 3, 2020.
The ballot measure would have merged the city of St. Louis and St. Louis County into a single political entity named The Metropolitan City of St. Louis.[1]
Residents of The Metropolitan City of St. Louis would have elected a 33‑member legislative council, with members elected from districts to four-year terms; an executive mayor; a prosecutor; and an assessor.[1]
The Metropolitan City of St. Louis would have been the 10th largest city in the U.S., with a population around 1.3 million as of 2017.[2]
On May 6, 2019, the group behind the initiative, Better Together, announced that the initiative was being pulled for 2020. Mark Wrighton, chairman of the campaign, said, "Faced with the reality that we have an enormous challenge, in terms of winning the ballot initiative, we decided to step back."[3]
Text of measure
Full text
The full text of the ballot initiative is available here: Initiative 2020-42
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article VI, Missouri Constitution
The ballot measure would have replaced Section 30(a) through Section 33 of Article VI of the Missouri Constitution.[1]
Support
Better Together, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, proposed the ballot initiative.[2]
Supporters
- Mayor Lyda Krewson (D), St. Louis[4]
- Executive Steve Stenger (D), St. Louis County[4]
Arguments
- Mayor Lyda Krewson (D), the mayor of St. Louis, said, "In our hearts, we know that our fragmented government does not work well for all of us. We know our communities have starkly different outcomes in life expectancy, educational attainment and job opportunities… We stand here at this moment in time, faced with this big opportunity, knowing that the implementation will be challenging and exciting and messy. But also knowing that it is in our hearts to create a new St. Louis. A more equitable St. Louis."[4]
Opposition
Opponents
- Mayor Thomas Schneider, Florissant[5]
- Mayor Grant Mabie, Crestwood[6]
Arguments
- Ben Keathley, a member of the Chesterfield City Council, said he was against a statewide vote, rather than a local vote, on consolidation. He stated, "If this is the thing we want to do, then we should be the ones choosing it. People all over the state of Missouri shouldn’t be picking the government for someone else."[7]
Background
Voters in Missouri had addressed several ballot measures related to the consolidation of St. Louis and St. Louis County, including in 1930 and 1962. Both of the ballot measures were defeated.
Path to the ballot
Process in Missouri
In Missouri, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated constitutional amendment for the ballot is equal to 8 percent of the votes cast for governor in the previous gubernatorial election in six of the eight state congressional districts. Signatures must be filed with the secretary of state six months prior to the election.
The requirements to get an initiated constitutional amendment certified for the 2020 ballot:
- Signatures: The smallest possible requirement was 160,199 valid signatures. The actual requirement depends on the congressional districts in which signatures were collected.
- Deadline: The deadline to submit signatures was May 3, 2020.
Once the signatures have been filed with the secretary of state, the secretary copies the petition sheets and transmits them to county election authorities for verification. The secretary of state may choose whether the signatures are to be verified by a 5 percent random sample or full verification. If the random sampling projects between 90 percent and 110 percent of required signatures, a full check of all signatures is required. If more than 110 percent, the initiative is certified, and, if less than 90 percent, the initiative fails.
Stages of this initiative
- Christopher Pieper filed the first version, Petition #39, of this ballot initiative on January 28, 2019.[1]
- Pieper withdrew the first version of this initiative and filed the second, Petition #42, on February 11, 2019.[8]
- Better Together announced that the campaign was pulling the initiative on May 6, 2019, and was not planning on proposing a new version for the election in 2020.[3]
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Missouri Secretary of State, "Initiative 2020-039," January 28, 2019
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 CityLab, "City, Meet County: St. Louis Weighs Historic Merger," January 30, 2019
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Better Together pulls St. Louis city-county merger proposal," May 7, 2019
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 The Missouri Times, "Better Together, Mayor Krewson, County Executive Stenger share report with community," January 28, 2019
- ↑ Fox 2 Now, "Florissant mayor blasts Better Together merger plan," February 6, 2019
- ↑ KSDK, "Mayors question if we're really 'better together' in city-county merger," February 6, 2019
- ↑ St. Louis Public Radio, "Chesterfield Leaders Consider Alternatives To Better Together’s St. Louis City-County Merger Plan," January 30, 2019
- ↑
 |
State of Missouri Jefferson City (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
