Missouri Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Law and government== {{Main|Law and government of Missouri|List of Governors of Missouri}} {{Missouri Government}} [[File:MissouriCapitol.jpg|thumb|The [[Missouri State Capitol]] in [[Jefferson City, Missouri|Jefferson City]]]] [[File:Missouri-governor-mansion.jpg|left|thumb|The Governor's Mansion is on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].]] The current Constitution of Missouri, the fourth constitution for the state, was adopted in 1945. It provides for three branches of government: the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. The legislative branch consists of two bodies: the [[Missouri House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] and the [[Missouri Senate|Senate]]. These bodies comprise the [[Missouri General Assembly]]. The House of Representatives has 163 members apportioned based on the last [[United States Census|decennial census]]. The Senate consists of 34 members from districts of approximately equal populations. The judicial department comprises the [[Supreme Court of Missouri]], which has seven judges, the [[Missouri Court of Appeals]] (an intermediate [[appellate court]] divided into three districts), sitting in Kansas City, St. Louis, and Springfield, and 45 Circuit Courts which function as local trial courts. The executive branch is headed by the [[List of Governors of Missouri|Governor of Missouri]] and includes five other statewide elected offices. Following the departure from office of State Auditor [[Nicole Galloway]] on January 9, 2023, there are no Democrats holding statewide elected positions in Missouri.<ref>[https://www.kcur.org/politics-elections-and-government/2023-01-09/scott-fitzpatrick-sworn-in-as-missouri-auditor-vows-to-monitor-school-spending "Scott Fitzpatrick sworn in as Missouri Auditor, vows to monitor school spending"], [[KCUR]], January 9, 2023</ref> [[Harry S Truman]] (1884–1972), the 33rd President of the United States (Democrat, 1945–1953), was born in [[Lamar, Missouri|Lamar]]. He was a judge in [[Jackson County, Missouri|Jackson County]] and then [[List of United States Senators from Missouri|represented the state]] in the [[United States Senate]] for ten years, before being elected vice-president in [[1944 United States presidential election|1944]]. He lived in Independence after retiring as president in 1953. In a 2020 study, Missouri was ranked as 48th on the "Cost of Voting Index" with only Texas and Georgia ranking higher.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=J. Pomante II |first1=Michael |last2=Li |first2=Quan |title=Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020 |journal=Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy |date=December 15, 2020 |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=503–509 |doi=10.1089/elj.2020.0666 |s2cid=225139517 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Missouri retains the [[death penalty]]. Authorized methods of execution include the [[Gas chamber]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/executions/methods-of-execution | title=Methods of Execution }}</ref> ===Former status as a political bellwether=== {{Main|Missouri bellwether}} {{further|Political party strength in Missouri}} Missouri was widely regarded as a bellwether in American politics, often making it a [[swing state]]. The state had a longer stretch of supporting the winning presidential candidate than any other state, having voted with the nation in every election from 1904 to 2004 with a single exception: [[1956 United States presidential election|1956]] when Democratic candidate [[Adlai Stevenson II|Adlai Stevenson]] of neighboring Illinois lost the election despite carrying Missouri. However, in recent years, areas of the state outside Kansas City, St. Louis, and Columbia have shifted heavily to the right, making Missouri a safe Republican state on the whole. The last Democrat to win the state's electoral votes was [[1996 United States presidential election in Missouri|Bill Clinton in 1996]]. It rejected Democrat [[Barack Obama]] of neighboring Illinois in both of his successful campaigns in 2008 and 2012. Missouri voted for [[Mitt Romney]] by nearly 10% in 2012 and voted for [[Donald Trump]] by over 18% in 2016 and 15% in 2020. On October 24, 2012, there were 4,190,936 registered voters.<ref name="registered">{{cite web |url=http://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/registeredvoters.asp?rvmID=0012 |title=Registered Voters in Missouri 2012 |publisher=Missouri Secretary of State |date=October 24, 2012 |access-date=October 28, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025023240/http://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/registeredvoters.asp?rvmID=0012 |archive-date=October 25, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> At the state level, both Democratic Senator [[Claire McCaskill]] and Democratic Governor [[Jay Nixon]] were re-elected. On November 3, 2020, there were 4,318,758 registered voters, with 3,026,028 voting (70.1%).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sos.mo.gov/CMSImages/ElectionResultStatistics/Nov2020OfficialVoterTurnout.pdf |title=Voter Turnout Report: 2020 General Election |publisher=Missouri Secretary of State |date=December 8, 2020 |access-date=June 14, 2021 }}{{Dead link|date=December 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> By this time, the state had favored more Republican candidates for federal offices. The offices held by Democratic party officials a decade before were subsequently held by Republican Senator [[Josh Hawley]] and Republican Governor [[Mike Parson]]. Missouri's accuracy rate for the last 29 presidential elections is now 89.66%. This percentage is on par with that of Ohio, which has voted for the winner of every presidential election since 1896, except in [[1944 United States presidential election|1944]], [[1960 United States presidential election|1960]] and [[2020 United States presidential election|2020]], with no Republican ever winning the White House without the state. Nevada has been carried by the winner of every presidential election since 1912, with only two exceptions: [[1976 United States presidential election|1976]] and [[2016 United States presidential election|2016]]. New Mexico has voted for the winner of every presidential election since its statehood in 1912, except in [[1976 United States presidential election|1976]], [[2000 United States presidential election|2000]] and [[2016 United States presidential election|2016]]. {{PresHead|place=Missouri|whig=yes|source=<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/compare.php?year=2008&fips=29&f=1&off=0&elect=0&type=state|title=Presidential General Election Results Comparison—Missouri|publisher=US Election Atlas|access-date=December 16, 2020|author=Leip, David}}</ref>}} <!-- PresRow should be {{PresRow|Year|Winning party|GOP vote #|Dem vote #|3rd party vote #|State}} --> {{PresRow|2020|Republican|1,718,736|1,253,014|58,998|Missouri}} {{PresRow|2016|Republican|1,594,511|1,071,068|162,687|Missouri}} {{PresRow|2012|Republican|1,482,440|1,223,796|57,453|Missouri}} {{PresRow|2008|Republican|1,445,814|1,441,911|41,386|Missouri}} {{PresRow|2004|Republican|1,455,713|1,259,171|16,480|Missouri}} {{PresRow|2000|Republican|1,189,924|1,111,138|58,830|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1996|Democratic|890,016|1,025,935|242,114|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1992|Democratic|811,159|1,053,873|526,533|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1988|Republican|1,084,953|1,001,619|6,656|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1984|Republican|1,274,188|848,583|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1980|Republican|1,074,181|931,182|94,461|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1976|Democratic|927,443|998,387|27,770|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1972|Republican|1,154,058|698,531|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1968|Republican|811,932|791,444|206,126|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1964|Democratic|653,535|1,164,344|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1960|Democratic|962,221|972,201|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1956|Democratic|914,289|918,273|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1952|Republican|959,429|929,830|2,803|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1948|Democratic|655,039|917,315|6,274|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1944|Democratic|761,524|807,804|3,146|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1940|Democratic|871,009|958,476|4,244|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1936|Democratic|697,891|1,111,043|19,701|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1932|Democratic|564,713|1,025,406|19,775|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1928|Republican|834,080|662,562|4,079|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1924|Republican|648,486|572,753|86,719|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1920|Republican|727,162|574,799|30,839|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1916|Democratic|369,339|398,032|19,398|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1912|Democratic|207,821|330,746|159,999|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1908|Republican|347,203|346,574|22,150|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1904|Republican|321,449|296,312|26,100|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1900|Democratic|314,092|351,922|17,642|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1896|Democratic|304,940|363,667|5,299|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1892|Democratic|227,646|268,400|45,537|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1888|Democratic|236,252|261,943|23,165|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1884|Democratic|203,081|236,023|2,164|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1880|Democratic|153,647|208,600|35,042|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1876|Democratic|145,027|202,086|3,497|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1872|Democratic|119,196|151,434|2,429|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1868|Republican|86,860|65,628|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1864|Republican|72,750|31,596|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1860|Democratic|17,028|58,801|89,734|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1856|Democratic|0|57,964|48,522|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1852|Democratic|29,984|38,817|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1848|Democratic|32,671|40,077|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1844|Democratic|31,200|41,322|0|Missouri}} {{PresRow|1840|Democratic|22,954|29,969|0|Missouri}} {{PresFoot|1836|Democratic|7,337|10,995|0|Missouri}} ===Laissez-faire alcohol and tobacco laws=== {{Main|Alcohol laws of Missouri|List of smoking bans in the United States#Missouri}} Missouri has been known for its population's generally "stalwart, conservative, noncredulous" attitude toward regulatory regimes, which is one of the origins of the state's unofficial nickname, the "Show-Me State".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/history/slogan.asp |title=Missouri Secretary of State—State Archives—Origin of "Show Me" slogan |publisher=Sos.mo.gov |access-date=July 31, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100724211551/http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/history/slogan.asp |archive-date=July 24, 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> As a result, and combined with the fact that Missouri is one of America's leading alcohol states, regulation of alcohol and tobacco in Missouri is among the most [[laissez-faire]] in America. For 2013, the annual "Freedom in the 50 States" study prepared by the [[Mercatus Center]] at [[George Mason University]] ranked Missouri as #3 in America for alcohol freedom and #1 for tobacco freedom (#7 for freedom overall).<ref name=gmufreedom>{{cite web |url=http://freedominthe50states.org/overall/missouri |title=''Freedom in the 50 States-Missouri'' |author=Mercatus Center |date=March 28, 2013 |website=Freedom in the 50 States |publisher=[[George Mason University]] |access-date=March 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130407162026/http://freedominthe50states.org/overall/missouri |archive-date=April 7, 2013 |url-status=live |author-link=Mercatus Center }}</ref> The study notes that Missouri's "alcohol regime is one of the least restrictive in the United States, with no [[blue laws]] and taxes well below average", and that "Missouri ranks best in the nation on tobacco freedom".<ref name=gmufreedom /> Missouri law makes it "an improper employment practice" for an employer to refuse to hire, to fire, or otherwise to disadvantage any person because that person lawfully uses alcohol or tobacco products outside of work.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C200-299/2900000145.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 290.145 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100808034636/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C200-299/2900000145.HTM |archive-date=August 8, 2010 }}</ref> With a large German immigrant population and the development of a brewing industry, Missouri always has had among the most permissive [[alcohol laws of the United States by state|alcohol laws in the United States]]. It has never enacted statewide [[prohibition in the United States|prohibition]]. Missouri voters rejected prohibition in three separate referendums in 1910, 1912, and 1918. Alcohol regulation did not begin in Missouri until 1934. Today, alcohol laws are controlled by the state government, and local jurisdictions are prohibited from going beyond those state laws. Missouri has no statewide [[United States open container laws|open container law]] or prohibition on [[drinking in public]], no alcohol-related [[blue law]]s, no [[local option]], no precise locations for selling liquor by the package (allowing even [[drug store]]s and [[filling station]]s to sell any kind of liquor), and no differentiation of laws based on alcohol percentage. State law protects persons from arrest or criminal penalty for [[public intoxication]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C000-099/0670000305.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 67.305 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701093303/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C000-099/0670000305.HTM |archive-date=July 1, 2010 }}</ref> Missouri law expressly prohibits any jurisdiction from going [[dry county|dry]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3110000170.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.170 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100830160839/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3110000170.HTM |archive-date=August 30, 2010 }}</ref> Missouri law also expressly allows parents and guardians to serve alcohol to their children.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3110000310.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.310 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527124105/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3110000310.HTM |archive-date=May 27, 2010 }}</ref> The [[Power & Light District]] in Kansas City is one of the few places in the United States where a state law explicitly allows persons over 21 to possess and consume open containers of alcohol in the street (as long as the beverage is in a plastic cup).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3110000086.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 311.086 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100829203656/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3110000086.HTM |archive-date=August 29, 2010 }}</ref> As for tobacco (as of July 2016), Missouri has the lowest cigarette excise taxes in the United States, at 17 cents per pack,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0097.pdf |title=State Cigarette Excise Tax Rates |access-date=November 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161004215627/http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0097.pdf |archive-date=October 4, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and the state electorate voted in 2002, 2006, 2012, and twice in 2016 to keep it that way.<ref>"A burning issue", ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'', November 12, 2006</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/missouri-keeps-tobacco-tax-as-the-lowest-in-the-nation/article_636bb3bb-4634-5eea-adf7-51f16cc0b333.html|title=Missouri keeps tobacco tax as the lowest in the nation|first=Tim|last=O'Neil|website=stltoday.com|date=November 6, 2012 |access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180713143016/https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/missouri-keeps-tobacco-tax-as-the-lowest-in-the-nation/article_636bb3bb-4634-5eea-adf7-51f16cc0b333.html|archive-date=July 13, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2007, ''[[Forbes]]'' named Missouri's largest metropolitan area, [[St. Louis]], America's "best city for smokers".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/business/2007/11/01/tobacco-smoking-north-carolina-biz-cx_tvr_1101smoking.html |title=Best Cities for Smokers |date=November 1, 2007 |work=Forbes |access-date=July 31, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100531204142/http://www.forbes.com/2007/11/01/tobacco-smoking-north-carolina-biz-cx_tvr_1101smoking.html|archive-date=May 31, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ky3.com/content/news/missouri-congress-races-400490581.html |title=Missouri voters reject tobacco tax hikes |work=KY3-TV |access-date=November 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161109221450/http://www.ky3.com/content/news/missouri-congress-races-400490581.html |archive-date=November 9, 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref> According to the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]], in 2008 Missouri had the fourth highest percentage of adult smokers among U.S. states, at 24.5%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/brfss/list.asp?cat=TU&yr=2008&qkey=4396&state=All |title=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System—Adults who are current smokers", September 19, 2008 |publisher=Apps.nccd.cdc.gov |date=May 15, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100310192932/http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/brfss/list.asp?cat=TU&yr=2008&qkey=4396&state=All |archive-date=March 10, 2010 }}</ref> Although federal law prohibits the sale of tobacco to persons under 21, tobacco products can be distributed to persons under 21 by family members on private property.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C400-499/4070000931.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.931.3 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100815012627/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C400-499/4070000931.HTM |archive-date=August 15, 2010 }}</ref> No statewide [[smoking ban]] ever has been seriously entertained before the [[Missouri General Assembly]], and in October 2008, a statewide survey by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services found that only 27.5% of Missourians support a statewide ban on smoking in all bars and restaurants.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dhss.mo.gov/County_level_study/header.php?cnty=929&profile_type=2&chkBox=C |title=Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, ''County Level Survey 2007: Secondhand Smoke for Missouri Adults'', October 1, 2008 |publisher=Dhss.mo.gov |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216141745/http://www.dhss.mo.gov/County_level_study/header.php?cnty=929&profile_type=2&chkBox=C |archive-date=December 16, 2008 }}</ref> Missouri state law permits restaurants seating less than 50 people, bars, bowling alleys, and billiard parlors to decide their own smoking policies, without limitation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moga.mo.gov/statutes/C100-199/1910000769.HTM |title=Mo. Rev. Stat. § 191.769 |publisher=Moga.mo.gov |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=July 31, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111210110244/http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C100-199/1910000769.HTM |archive-date=December 10, 2011 }}</ref> [[File:United States presidential election in Missouri, 2016.svg|thumb|right|[[Treemap]] of the popular vote by county, 2016 presidential election]] ===Cannabis laws=== {{See also|Cannabis in Missouri}} In 2014, a Republican-led legislature and Democratic governor [[Jay Nixon]] enacted a series of laws to partially decriminalize possession of cannabis by making first-time possession of up to 10 grams no longer punishable with jail time and legalizing [[Cannabidiol|CBD]] oil. In November 2018, [[Cannabis in Missouri|66% of voters approved]] a constitutional amendment that established a right to medical marijuana and a system for licensing, regulating, and taxing medical marijuana. ===Counties=== {{See also|List of counties in Missouri}} Missouri has 114 counties and one [[Independent city (United States)|independent city]], St. Louis, which is Missouri's most densely populated—5,140 people per square mile. The largest counties by population are [[St. Louis County, Missouri|St. Louis]] (996,726), [[Jackson County, Missouri|Jackson]] (698,895), and [[St. Charles County, Missouri|St. Charles]] (395,504). Worth County is the smallest (2,057). The largest counties by size are [[Texas County, Missouri|Texas]] (1,179 square miles) and [[Shannon County, Missouri|Shannon]] (1,004). [[Worth County, Missouri|Worth County]] is the smallest (266). Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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