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Senate approves bill moving back Missouri primary date

The legislation would move filing periods for candidates from late February to March.
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The legislation would move filing periods for candidates from late February to March.

The Missouri Senate has given first-round approval to legislation that would push back the filing period for the state’s August primaries by one month.
The bill’s backers say the filing period needs to be moved forward to March 27th through April 24th, due to legal uncertainty over the State House and Senate district maps.  Currently, the filing period begins February 28th and ends March 27th for all state and federal races this year.  There was an attempt to amend the bill, in which the filing period for State House and Senate races would have been the only one moved.  It was sponsored by Senator Scott Rupp (R-Wentzville).

“I think that all those people running for Congress and things of those nature are planning on February 28th, and just because the commissions couldn’t get it done and the courts messed it up and stuff, I think let’s just deal with those that are affected,” Rupp said.

But the amendment overwhelmingly failed, and the bill easily passed.  It needs one more vote before moving to the Missouri House, but that vote is expected to take place Thursday.

Missouri Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a proud alumnus of the University of Mississippi (a.k.a., Ole Miss), and has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off the old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Mason, and their cat, Honey.
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