Valuable Resources: Missouri Election Commission

Before candidates can raise funds in Missouri, they have to know the rules they’re playing by.

The Missouri Ethics Commission is the governing body that manages candidate and campaign fundraising. They do a great job of providing candidates with all of the pertinent information for running a campaign within Missouri’s election parameters.

The MEC tries its hardest to simplify its rules and regulations for the people running. Since a lot of local candidates are first-timers, they provide tons of online tutorials, simplified brochures, and calendars to keep everyone on track. 

One of my favorite resources on the MEC website is the fundraising brochure. It breaks down the requirements for fundraising "activities" and provides an example of how to report money collected at fundraisers, as shown below. 

An example of fundraising record-keeping.

The Commission also provides email and phone support for confused candidates. When I emailed the MEC with questions about where to find campaign finance reports for a specific candidate, they responded within two hours. What great service!

In the coming weeks, we'll talk to candidates about how useful they find the MEC's resources to be and how they navigate the complicated system that is campaign finance reform.