Missouri has long offered absentee voting before elections, but voters must provide an excuse, such as not being in their home county on Election Day.

A change to state law in 2022 gave voters a window of time — starting two weeks before an election — during which they could vote early without an excuse.

The unexcused postal vote can only be cast in person at the election offices.

The St. Louis County Board of Elections allows voters to cast their no-excuse absentee ballots at any of 14 polling locations, including the board’s headquarters at 725 Northwest Plaza Drive in St. Ann.

For more information, including a list of satellite voting locations and hours of operation, visit the St. Louis County Election Board website.

In St. Charles County, no-excuse absentee voting will be available at the Board of Elections headquarters, 397 Turner Boulevard in St. Peters.

No-excuse absentee ballots can also be dropped off at Element Church at 100 Mall Parkway #500 in Wentzville.

Meanwhile, in the city of St. Louis, eight locations will be available for no-excuse absentee voting, including the Board of Elections headquarters at 300 North Tucker Boulevard.

For a list of early voting sites in St. Louis, visit the Board of Elections website.

The League of Women Voters St. Louis is trying to spread the word about Missouri’s recent change allowing no-excuse early voting.

“Unfortunately, not enough people know about the opportunity to vote early,” Joan Hubbard, co-president of the League of Women Voters St. Louis, said in a statement. “People with disabilities or others who want to avoid a long wait on November 5th should take advantage of early voting.”

Missouri still offers absentee voting with an excuse. This started on September 24th. Absentee ballots mailed to voters must be returned by 7 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.

In St. Louis County, these ballots can be returned by mail or in person to the Board of Elections headquarters in St. Ann. They could also be returned to a field office before Election Day, said Eric Fey, the Democratic director of the county elections board.

He said voters who cast absentee ballots must provide valid photo identification, such as a driver’s license or passport.

Voters without a valid photo ID can provisionally cast their vote on Election Day.

In order for these votes to be counted, the voter must either return to the polling place with their photo ID or their signature on the provisional ballot must match the signature on file with the election authority.

Fey said about 17,000 mail-in ballots had been returned in St. Louis County as of Monday. He said more than 7,000 people voted in person at the St. Ann office.