2012 Missouri Caucus
(Make sure to attend our informational meeting where you can ask your questions about the caucus on Thursday, March 8th- 6pm at Knights of Columbus Hall- 2340 W. Grand, Springfield, MO)

Why a caucus in Missouri (a brief summary):
Missouri was set to lose 1/2 of its Republican delegates at the National Convention due to the fact that its presidential primary date was bumped up to Tuesday, February 7th.  To keep from Missouri losing its power at the convention it was decided that Missouri would go to a caucus to pick its candidate for president.

Because of some problems with the political process in the state of Missouri there was still a presidential primary on Tuesday, February 7th however, the candidate that was selected out of this election (Santorum) will not "count" as Missouri's candidate for president; the candidate who is selected out of the caucus system will be our official candidate.

Basic difference between a primary and a caucus:
A primary is like any election you have participated in where you go to a designated polling place within a certain timeframe and cast a secret ballot.  There is no electioneering within a certain radius of a polling location.  The atmosphere is very quiet and respectful.

A caucus is an event where registered voters gather together at the same time and vote for delegates who will represent them at the national convention.  Electioneering is allowed and you are allowed to tell other people how you think they should vote.  The atmosphere is very loud and energetic.

When is the caucus:
There will be three levels to the Missouri caucus.

County Level
Each county will have its own caucus in their county.  This will take place for a majority of counties in Missouri on Saturday, March 17th.  (Counties can request changes to the date and/or time if there are conflicts.)  In Greene county- registration will begin at 8am and the caucus will be at 10am.  Most counties will be similar, however see the list below for exact times.  Once registration time is complete- no late comers will be allowed. 

The caucus will start out by determinining your counties rules, once those are established, delegates will be selected to represent the county at the congressional level and the state level.  Counties are not required to vote on a candidate to represent the county, however it could be placed into the counties rules that one makes known their vote for president.

Each county will have a different amount of delegates based on how many people in that county voted in 2008.  For more info on how many delegates your county has see the "Delegate Info" section below.  County level delegates are non-binding votes unless determined otherwise in your counties rules set the day of your counties caucus. 

Congressional level
This will take place for all congressional districts (8) in Missouri on Saturday, April 21st.  You will vote on based on the new congressional map in Missouri.  Greene County's 7th congressional meeting place: Pierce City, and there will be 314 county delegates in Greene Co.  The selected delegates from the county level will attend this caucus and vote on behalf of their county. 

After the vote on the candidates, each congressional district will select 3 delegates and 3 alternates to go straight to the National convention to represent them.  Each county will also pick a selected number of delegates (depending on the 2008 vote county numbers) to represent them at the state level.  To learn more about the delegates see the "Delegate info" section below. Congressional delegates are binding votes.

*If you are selected to go to the Republican National convention from either the congressional level or state level you will be required to pay for your own travel expenses to Tampa Bay, Florida.

On the congressional level planks that were sumbitted to amend the party platform will be discussed.  These planks must be submitted at your county level caucus and then will be forwarded onto the congressional caucus leader. 

State Level
This will take place in Springfield, MO at the University Plaza Hotel on Friday, June 1st through Sunday, June 3rd. 

*If you are selected to go to the Republican National convention from either the congressional level or state level you will be required to pay for your own travel expenses to Tampa Bay, Florida.

What do I need to do to caucus:
You will need to be a registered voter in your county to caucus.  This will be checked when you come to caucus.  Technically, you do not have to be a "registered Republican" to attend the caucus (you do not register under a party in Missouri to vote), however when you caucus you will be required to sign an affidavit stating to the fact that you are a tried and true Republican.  (Remember, even thought these affidavit's aren't legally binding, your name will be on this form and if you plan to run for office under another party your name will be on a form saying you are a member of the Republican Party and that may look bad.  Just something to think about.) 

Please bring with you your voter registration card and your driver's license or an ID.  There is no cost to caucus.  There is no formal dress code for the caucus; dress comfortably. 

The caucus could possibly be a long process in your county, (based on how many people show up and how much debate there is on rules and delegates.  A caucus could last from an hour or two to late in the afternoon.) There may be a lot of down time for you.  Feel free to bring your laptop, your kindle, knitting, a book, homework, or something to occupy your time.

Also, it would be really smart to remember your legislative district number- especially on the county level in case you have to split up into districts for a vote.

We have had multiple questions regarding bringing kids to the caucus.  Best case scenario- find a sitter for the day.  We know that not everyone can afford a sitter.  As far as we know there is no rule against bringing your children, HOWEVER remember young children can sometimes be a disruption to other people.  If you bring your child please bring something to keep them extremely occupied.

Where to caucus:
When it comes to the county level each county will release info on where you can caucus.  We will keep you updated as we hear where each caucus will take place.

Barry County:
     TBD

Barton County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Barton Co. Courthouse (big courtroom), 1007 Broadway, Lamar

Cedar County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Cedar County courthouse, 113 S. Street, Stockton

Christian County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Ozark High School, 1350 W. Bluff Dr., Ozark

Dade County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Dade County Courthouse, 300 Water St., Greenfield

Dallas County:
     TBD

Douglas County:
     TBD

Greene County:
     March 17th- registration 8am, caucus starts 10am
     University Plaza Hotel, 333 John Q. Hammons Parkway, Springfield

Hickory County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Hickory County senior center, Hwy 54, Wheatland

Jasper County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Carthage Memorial Hall, 407 S. Garrison, Carthage

Laclede County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Lifepoint Church, 195 N. Washington St, Lebanon

Lawrence County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Old Lawrence County Courthouse, 2nd floor, #1 courthouse square, Mt. Vernon

McDonald County:
     TBD

Newton County:
     March 17th- doors open at 9am, caucus starts at 10am
     Crowder College, Faber Hall, Wright Conference Center, 601 Laclede Ave, Neosho

Ozark County:
     TBD

Polk County:
     TBD

St. Clair County:
     March 17th- 10am
     St. Clair County courthouse, 2nd floor, 655 2nd street, Osceola

Stone County:
     Stone Co. Law Enforcement Center (court room- 1st floor) Galena Square

Taney County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Taney County courthouse, Commission hearing room, 132 David St, Forsyth

Webster County:
     TBD

Wright County:
     March 17th- 10am
     Wright County courthouse, 125 courthouse square, Hartville

Other county caucus locations throughout the state:
Click here

Learn more about what will happen at the caucus:
There are a possibility of many things that will happen at each caucus based on what your county determines in the rules.  The first thing that will happen for the caucus is to determine the rules.  The second will be voting on the members of the caucus (i.e. delegate or slate) that will represent you on the congressional level caucus and the state (this is on the county level).  A possibilty will be voting on the presidential candidate that the county wants to represent them on the congressional level (once again- determined on your counties rules).  Another thing that could take place will be that the parties will evaluate their parties platform and make amendments and changes if need be. (At the Greene county level you will be able to submit planks to the platform but they will be directed to the congressional level for discussion.)

Listen to a podcast with the executive director of the Republican party for the 7th congressional district, Mavis Busiek, as to what will take place at the caucus.  click here  This audio will explain how you can become a delegate (i.e. slate) for your county at the congressional and even state level when you attend the county caucus. 

Delegates Info:
Each county will get delegates based on how many people voted in 2008.  Each county will select number a certain number of delegates to represent the county on the congressional level and the state level as well as the same number of alternates.  (ie. Christian county has 37 delegates assigned to them.  There will be 37 delegates for the congressional caucus, 37 alternative delegates for the congressional caucus, 37 delegates for the state caucus, and 37 alternative delegates for the state caucus.) 

Each county will determine how they select their delgates.  The same list of delegates could represent the county on the congressional level and the state level or there could be different lists.. 

     Barry County- 14 delegates
     Barton County- 7 delegates
     Cedar County- 6 delegates
     Christian County- 37 delegates
     Dade County- 5 delegates
     Dallas County- 7 delegates
     Douglas County- 7 delegates
     Greene County- 111 delegates
     Hickory County- 5 delegates
     Jasper County- 46 delegates
     Laclede County- 16 delegates
     Lawrence County- 17 delegates
     McDonald County- 8 delegates
     Newton County- 26 delegates
     Ozark County- 5 delegates
     Polk County- 13 delegates
     St. Clair County- 5 delegates
     Stone County- 16 delegates
     Taney County- 22 delegates
     Webster County- 15 delegates (11 to the 4th district, 4 to the 7th district)
     Wright County- 9 delegates

These will be nominated and elected during the county level caucus; the delegates (i.e slate) will go onto the congressional level caucus.  In addition, each congressional level will get 3 delegates to send directly to the National convention that will bypass the state caucus and represent the congressional district.

Missouri will have 52 total delegates.  Because Missouri is not a winner takes all state our delegates will be determined as followed: 10 at-large delegates (picked at the state caucus level), 24 congressional district delegates (8 districts with 3 delegates each- picked at the congressional caucus level), 3 state party delegates, and 15 bonus delegates (picked at the state caucus level.)

More information:
There is no such thing as an absentee vote at a caucus.  If you cannot attend your caucus you cannot vote.

Want to learn more about the Missouri Caucus.  Listen to the daily Missouri Caucus questions of the Day.  Click here

Learn more about the caucus and delegate selection from the Missouri Republican Party.  Click here

Watch a video from a precinct level Iowa Caucus and what took place; this will be similar to what you will be doing in Missouri but not exact as Missouri has different caucus rules to follow.  This video is thanks to C-SPAN.  click here   (video is on the left hand side of the page)

Have a question regarding the caucus?  Shoot us an email to ktucker@ksgf.com and make sure you put CAUCUS QUESTION in the subject. We will try our hardest to seek out the answer for your question.

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