BELLE — Maries County Democratic Party Chair Darrell Schulte said on Feb. 1 that it will host its presidential preference process from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, March 23, at the Youth Building in Vienna City Park.

“They have those dates nailed down,” Schulte said, adding that anyone who is interested in voting by mail should begin the process now. “Anyone interested in requesting the ballot should start now.”

Voters could start requesting mail-in ballots on Feb. 1 via the Democratic Party’s website at http://request.mrgovote.com/missouri. Distribution of mail-in ballots is set to begin on Feb. 17 and March 12 is the last day a proxy ballot may be requested.

The Missouri Democratic Party announced on Jan. 23 that the presidential candidates’ filing period closed on Jan. 22 and the following names will appear on the ballot:

Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

Dean Phillips

Stephen P. Lyons

Armando Perez-Serrato

Marianne Williamson

Jason Michael Palmer

Uncommitted (which automatically appears on ballots as write-ins are not allowed).

“Maybe five people are running, but only one has really been heard of,” Schulte said. “The other thing that may drive up attendance is the abortion issue with the initiative that will be present for people who want to sign.”

Schulte said the initiative is open to anyone, regardless of party lines.

Voters may look to March 25 for primary results to be released.

The party-run Presidential Preference Primary is replacing the state-run Presidential Preference Primary. Voters who participate will meet in one centralized location within the county. Missouri has a total of 71 delegates and five alternates that will be assigned to candidates.

The March 23 vote is the first step in the delegate selection process. All Missouri voters are eligible to participate in the process, but to be a delegate, they must register as a Democratic voter in Missouri.

Potential party delegates must declare their candidacy by April 11 by filing a statement of candidacy along with a pledge of support. Ward, township, legislative district, and county mass meetings will take place on April 18 across the state.

Filing ends for district-level delegates on April 25 to file for Congressional District Conventions. Selection of district delegates, alternate candidates and respective presidential candidates will be announced on May 2 and on May 6 presidential candidates will be given a list of approved delegates and alternates to send to the state party.

On May 9, district-level delegates are selected at the Congressional District Conventions.

An overview and schedule for the 2024 Missouri Democratic Party Presidential Caucus is available on its website.

The Missouri Democratic Party estimates this selection process to be between $250,000 to $450,000 for outreach, voter education, and delegate process and about $174,000 estimated for election administration of which the Missouri Democratic Party is responsible.

The Maries County Republican Party is scheduled to hold a traditional-style caucus on March 2 in the Vienna High School gym. Doors open at 8 a.m. and close at 10 a.m. when the caucus begins.