Creve Coeur-Olivette November Election Results Are In

Voters have spoken, and as a result, the Creve Coeur and Olivette communities now have two representatives in Congress, one new State Representative in Jefferson City, and more locally, funding for special education and library reconstruction.

Voters approved questions to fund what could mean a new Thornhill Branch of the St. Louis County library, and funds to renovate several buildings in the special school district, along with competitive teacher salaries.

The area will continue to be represented by Kathleen Burkett on the St. Louis County Council.

Under newly-drawn Congressional boundaries, Creve Coeur gets two members of Congress in the re-elected William Lacy Clay, and in the newly-elected Ann Wagner. Olivette will continue to be represented by Rep. Clay.

Click here for more on results for races at the statewide and federal level

In the General Assembly, the area will be represented by Democrats Jill Schupp and Sue Meredith, who were not contested in the November election.

We invite you to look back at our coverage throughout the day Tuesday, and share your reflections about the days to come.

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4:50 p.m. Tuesday Update

Just to follow up on an earlier post about the lack of Democratic candidates and signage at the polls, Patch found one party activist scrambling to sway hearts and minds.

"I'm pissed," she said, as she put Claire McCaskill signs out at Holy Cross ELCA Church on the western side of Creve Coeur. 

State Representative Jill Schupp, running unopposed in her bid for another term in the General Assembly, said in an email to Patch:

I always like to see signs, but they don't win elections. Our President's campaign and the Missouri statewide candidates are putting their people to work on tasks other than yardsign coverage. There are more  personal ways to reach voters. I think they are using their resources well. 

Late this afternoon, people at Bellerive Elementary School said that they were jammed between 6 a.m and 12:00 p.m., sometimes going 50 deep in line. One voter told Patch she was told that the precinct has seen twice the number of voters it saw in 2008. She was voter number 677 in the 2 p.m. hour.

Creve Coeur City Councilman Scott Saunders was also outside the polling place to greet voters. He confirmed to Patch that he willl seek a second term on council when the filing period for next spring's elections opens in December.

2:22 p.m. Update:

Dorothy Carter, in our story asking people to tell us about their voting experiences, wrote:

There were about 25 people at Craig school in Creve Coeur at 10:30 am. However, my name was not in the book. Have voted here for 20 years, same name, same address. There were a few other people with the same problem. Had to fill out 3 forms, show my license several times to make sure I am who I am, vote at a table & then my vote had to go in a special envelope. I was then given a receipt with a PIN number & told to call election headquarters in 2 days to confirm I'm a registered voter. I asked if there was a computer glitch & was told "of course not"

1:15 p.m. Update:

Turnout seems to have slowed down at least slightly. A check of a few more polling places found raindrops and not much of a lunch rush to vote.

At Parkway Northeast Middle School, one voter told Patch he was concerned that another voter with a hat supporting President Obama was allowed into the voting precinct there. If you're supposed to vote at that location, keep in mind that the precinct is not located in the gym this time around.

Outside the school, Ken Catalano was the lone person Patch found in the rain, handing out Todd Akin literature to voters as they arrived. Catalano, a Creve Coeur resident who said he was taking a vacation day from work as a Boeing engineer to help the campaign, added that this was the first time he was involved in this way.

"I felt there was an attempt at character assassination really and I felt the need to get more involved to do what I could to help the campaign," Catalano said, referring to the criticism the Akin campaign faced in August when the GOP nominee for the U.S. Senate came under fire for comments about rape and pregnancy.

Republicans seem to be winning the signage war at polling places in general. At Traditional Congregation, the only Democrat with a sign up was Jason Kander, running against Shane Schoeller for Secretary of State. Moving eastward, there was more balance at Spoede Elementary School where signs for both campaigns dotted the landscape. As for turnout there, one voter said he believed he was roughly number 500 on the day, at about noon.

We want to hear from you. What were lines like at your polling place. What number were you in line? What kind of activity was there outside? What was important in determining your vote?

Does your family have a fun election day ritual, or a unique story of a first-time or long-time voter? Tell me: Gregg.Palermo@patch.com.

In the evening, we'll be at various campaign watch parties as the results come in and the reaction flows in. Check back with Creve Coeur Patch for constant updates as they become available. Those tables you see on the page will be updated as results come in.

You can load your election day photo in our Pics & Clips Gallery. Tweet us a photo or thoughts @crevecoeurpatch or talk to us on Facebook/CreveCoeurPatch. You can also follow us on Instagram, at creve_coeur_patch.

8:45 a.m. Update

Polling places have been open for almost three hours, and turnout during the morning rush seems to be robust.

There were reports of 25-30 minute lines at Bellerive Elementary School and Holy Cross ELCA Church in Creve Coeur, but with voters in good spirits.

The line was out the door at Craig Elementary School at 6:30 a.m., where Sheena Payton and her mother Bev were among the first-hour voters as Sheena, 20, cast her first ballot in a presidential election. 

"I don't feel any different. Not life-changing I don't think," she said, adding that the issue of gay rights was an important factor in her vote. "I'm just trying to get her excited about politics as much as I am," Bev said.

Over at the Creve Coeur Government Center, there were fewer signs in front of the polling place than in recent elections, but Patch did find two Washington University students, Jenni Dickinson and Reyaahneah Salamat, who were there earning participation credit in a voting rights course by serving as poll watchers. 

Salamat, of Ballwin, is originally from Iran and said she's in the process of becoming a naturalized citizen.

She said for all its flaw, the American form of elections is "heaven" compared to Iran, citing the protests which emerged after opposition candidates did not unseat the existing regime in 2009.

While it is still early, Dickinson said they haven't seen voting rights issues out of the ordinary in Creve Coeur.

"So far things have been going really well, really smooth. We had one lady that didn't know her polling place but we sent her on her way and she's good to go," she said.

Original Story

Polls open at 6 a.m. across the state of Missouri Tuesday and close at 7 p.m. as voters have their voices heard on races and issues impacting everyone from your neighborhood to the White House.

For a big picture look at it all, check out our Patch Election Guide.

Need to find your polling place? We have that too.

So what will we be doing? We'll be visiting area polling places, talking to voters about what was important to them and to see if there's anything amiss at the polls. Here in Creve Coeur and other Patch sites in St. Louis, editors will be meeting up with many of the candidates on the ballot to get their last-minute impressions of things.

But most importantly: we'll want to hear from you. What were lines like at your polling place. What number were you in line? What kind of activity was there outside? What was important in determining your vote?

Does your family have a fun election day ritual, or a unique story of a first-time or long-time voter? Tell me: Gregg.Palermo@patch.com.

In the evening, we'll be at various campaign watch parties as the results come in and the reaction flows in. Check back with Creve Coeur Patch for constant updates as they become available. Those tables you see on the page will be updated as results come in.

You can load your election day photo in our Pics & Clips Gallery. Tweet us a photo or thoughts @crevecoeurpatch or talk to us on Facebook/CreveCoeurPatch. You can also follow us on Instagram, at creve_coeur_patch. 

You may be just as excited to see this whole process finally come to an end as you are interested in who wins. Either way, we hope Patch is the place where you come to experience it all.