Committee advances charter change to align aldermanic special elections with Prop D approval voting

The Legislation and Rules Committee on Feb. 10 voted 4'1 to advance Board Bill 54, a proposed amendment to the City Charter that would repeal Section 5 of Article 4 so aldermanic vacancy elections use the same nonpartisan approval-voting system the city uses for other offices.

Alderman Daniela Velasquez, who introduced the measure, said the change is intended to "simplify future election changes" and reduce voter confusion created by having two different voting systems. "What we're really trying to do here is both honor the voters with Prop D and just make it simpler and less confusing for our voters," she said, noting the proposal strikes conflicting charter language rather than adding new election rules.

Ben Borgmeyer, Democratic director of the St. Louis City Board of Elections, told the committee the charter and election code currently "point in different directions," forcing the board to administer elections defensively. "That inconsistency has repeatedly created administrative uncertainty for the election board," Borgmeyer said, citing difficulties around candidate intake, ballot design and compliance. He said aligning the charter with the election code would reduce ambiguity and lower litigation risk.

Representatives of the local Democratic Party and ward committee officials urged the committee to pause or amend the bill. Sean Faust, chairman of the Saint Louis City Democratic Party, said the measure "would prohibit the Democratic Party of Saint Louis from fielding candidates for aldermanic election" and asked the committee to consider pairing the repeal with amendments that address other charter provisions affecting party participation. Amber Cole, an 11th Ward committeewoman, said voters should be able to know a candidate's party affiliation in special elections. Wiley Price of Ward 10 said recent changes have "systematically" reduced the Central Democratic Committee's role in municipal succession.

Alderman Keyes said she could not support the bill, saying voters deserve to know party affiliation. Velasquez responded that the measure is intended to reflect what 68 percent of voters approved in Prop D and to make it administratively easier to run consistent elections; she emphasized that the bill "doesn't add any election rules, doesn't change the system" but removes conflicting charter text.

The committee moved and the clerk recorded a roll-call vote that advanced the bill with 4 ayes and 1 no. The committee will send the ordinance forward according to the normal legislative process for charter amendments and, because this is a charter change, the measure would ultimately be submitted to voters if it proceeds.

Votes at a glance: Board Bill 54 ' motion to advance out of committee with due pass recommendation; committee tally 4 ayes, 1 no (Alderman Keyes objected).