Section 115.631

Title IX SUFFRAGE AND ELECTIONS

Chapter 115

Effective - 07 Nov 2018, 4 histories, see footnote   

  115.631.  Class one election offenses. — The following offenses, and any others specifically so described by law, shall be class one election offenses and are deemed felonies connected with the exercise of the right of suffrage.  Conviction for any of these offenses shall be punished by imprisonment of not more than five years or by fine of not less than two thousand five hundred dollars but not more than ten thousand dollars or by both such imprisonment and fine:

  (1)  Willfully and falsely making any certificate, affidavit, or statement required to be made pursuant to any provision of this chapter, including but not limited to statements specifically required to be made "under penalty of perjury"; or in any other manner knowingly furnishing false information to an election authority or election official engaged in any lawful duty or action in such a way as to hinder or mislead the authority or official in the performance of official duties.  If an individual willfully and falsely makes any certificate, affidavit, or statement required to be made under section 115.155, including but not limited to statements specifically required to be made "under penalty of perjury", such individual shall be guilty of a class D felony;

  (2)  Voting more than once or voting at any election knowing that the person is not entitled to vote or that the person has already voted on the same day at another location inside or outside the state of Missouri;

  (3)  Procuring any person to vote knowing the person is not lawfully entitled to vote or knowingly procuring an illegal vote to be cast at any election;

  (4)  Applying for a ballot in the name of any other person, whether the name be that of a person living or dead or of a fictitious person, or applying for a ballot in his or her own or any other name after having once voted at the election inside or outside the state of Missouri;

  (5)  Aiding, abetting or advising another person to vote knowing the person is not legally entitled to vote or knowingly aiding, abetting or advising another person to cast an illegal vote;

  (6)  An election judge knowingly causing or permitting any ballot to be in the ballot box at the opening of the polls and before the voting commences;

  (7)  Knowingly furnishing any voter with a false or fraudulent or bogus ballot, or knowingly practicing any fraud upon a voter to induce him or her to cast a vote which will be rejected, or otherwise defrauding him or her of his or her vote;

  (8)  An election judge knowingly placing or attempting to place or permitting any ballot, or paper having the semblance of a ballot, to be placed in a ballot box at any election unless the ballot is offered by a qualified voter as provided by law;

  (9)  Knowingly placing or attempting to place or causing to be placed any false or fraudulent or bogus ballot in a ballot box at any election;

  (10)  Knowingly removing any legal ballot from a ballot box for the purpose of changing the true and lawful count of any election or in any other manner knowingly changing the true and lawful count of any election;

  (11)  Knowingly altering, defacing, damaging, destroying or concealing any ballot after it has been voted for the purpose of changing the lawful count of any election;

  (12)  Knowingly altering, defacing, damaging, destroying or concealing any poll list, report, affidavit, return or certificate for the purpose of changing the lawful count of any election;

  (13)  On the part of any person authorized to receive, tally or count a poll list, tally sheet or election return, receiving, tallying or counting a poll list, tally sheet or election return the person knows is fraudulent, forged or counterfeit, or knowingly making an incorrect account of any election;

  (14)  On the part of any person whose duty it is to grant certificates of election, or in any manner declare the result of an election, granting a certificate to a person the person knows is not entitled to receive the certificate, or declaring any election result the person knows is based upon fraudulent, fictitious or illegal votes or returns;

  (15)  Willfully destroying or damaging any official ballots, whether marked or unmarked, after the ballots have been prepared for use at an election and during the time they are required by law to be preserved in the custody of the election judges or the election authority;

  (16)  Willfully tampering with, disarranging, altering the information on, defacing, impairing or destroying any voting machine or marking device after the machine or marking device has been prepared for use at an election and during the time it is required by law to remain locked and sealed with intent to impair the functioning of the machine or marking device at an election, mislead any voter at the election, or to destroy or change the count or record of votes on such machine;

  (17)  Registering to vote knowing the person is not legally entitled to register or registering in the name of another person, whether the name be that of a person living or dead or of a fictitious person;

  (18)  Procuring any other person to register knowing the person is not legally entitled to register, or aiding, abetting or advising another person to register knowing the person is not legally entitled to register;

  (19)  Knowingly preparing, altering or substituting any computer program or other counting equipment to give an untrue or unlawful result of an election;

  (20)  On the part of any person assisting a blind or disabled person to vote, knowingly failing to cast such person's vote as such person directs;

  (21)  On the part of any registration or election official, permitting any person to register to vote or to vote when such official knows the person is not legally entitled to register or not legally entitled to vote;

  (22)  On the part of a notary public acting in his or her official capacity, knowingly violating any of the provisions of this chapter or any provision of law pertaining to elections;

  (23)  Violation of any of the provisions of sections 115.275 to 115.303, or of any provision of law pertaining to absentee voting;

  (24)  Assisting a person to vote knowing such person is not legally entitled to such assistance, or while assisting a person to vote who is legally entitled to such assistance, in any manner coercing, requesting or suggesting that the voter vote for or against, or refrain from voting on any question, ticket or candidate;

  (25)  Engaging in any act of violence, destruction of property having a value of five hundred dollars or more, or threatening an act of violence with the intent of denying a person's lawful right to vote or to participate in the election process; and

  (26)  Knowingly providing false information about election procedures for the purpose of preventing any person from going to the polls.

­­--------

(L. 1977 H.B. 101 § 15.005, A.L. 1983 S.B. 234, A.L. 1997 S.B. 132, A.L. 2005 H.B. 353, A.L. 2006 S.B. 1014 & 730, A.L. 2014 S.B. 491, A.L. 2018 S.B. 592 merged with S.B. 975 & 1024 Revision)

Effective 8-28-18 (S.B. 975 & 1024 Revision); 11-07-18 (S.B. 592)