Gladstone, Missouri Public Records

Missouri residents can register to vote online at www.sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri, the official portal maintained by the Missouri Secretary of State. Registration deadlines fall 28 days before any election, and applicants must be U.S. Citizens, Missouri residents, at least 17.5 years old (18 to vote), and not serving a sentence for a felony conviction. Acceptable identification includes a Missouri driver's license or state ID number, or the last four digits of a Social Security number. Municipal elections in the city occur in April of odd-numbered years (2025, 2027, etc.), when voters select the mayor and city council positions. The next municipal election is scheduled for April 2025. Information about local candidates and ballot measures appears on the City of Gladstone website at www.gladstone.mo.us and through the Clay County election board. Residents can locate their assigned polling place using the lookup tool at www.sos.mo.gov/elections/goVoteMissouri/pollingplacelookup or by contacting the election board directly. Under Missouri law, voter registration lists are public records available for purchase for political purposes, and individual voter history showing which elections a person voted in is also public. Campaign finance reports for candidates and committees are filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission and searchable at www.mec.mo.gov. Precinct-level election results become part of the public record after each election. In the November 2024 presidential election, Clay County reported turnout of approximately 69-71 percent, with over 150,000 ballots cast out of roughly 215,000 registered voters, reflecting strong engagement in the competitive presidential race. Looking ahead to November 3, 2026, voters in the area will decide several significant races. Missouri will not have a U.S. Senate seat up for election in 2026 (the next Senate race is 2028 for Josh Hawley's seat), but voters will elect all of Missouri's eight U.S. House members, including the representative for Missouri's 6th Congressional District which includes the city. The 2026 ballot will also include races for statewide offices such as Missouri Governor (Mike Kehoe's seat, though governors can serve two terms), Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, State Treasurer, and State Auditor. Missouri House of Representatives seats (all 163 districts) and half of the Missouri Senate seats will also be on the ballot. At the Clay County level, various Clay County commission seats, county executive positions, judges, and local ballot initiatives may appear depending on term schedules. Municipal offices in the city are not up in 2026 as those are elected in odd years. Missouri voters can request absentee ballots for specific reasons including absence on election day, incapacity or confinement due to illness or physical disability, religious belief or practice, employment as an election authority, incarceration (if still eligible to vote), or being a participant in the address confidentiality program. Absentee ballot applications are available through the Clay County Election Board or online through the Missouri Secretary of State's website, and must be received by the second Wednesday before the election. No-excuse absentee voting is not available in Missouri, though voters may cast ballots in person during an early voting period at the election authority's office.