The Gadfly is a series of letters offering commentary on local issues and published in the Warrensburg Gazette.

We certainly have a lot to decide in the 2004 elections. In addition to the Presidential race and the whole U.S. House of Representatives, we in Missouri will select a U.S. Senator. But that’s not all – we also get to vote for Governor, Lt. Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General and State Treasurer, all of which (with the possible exception of Attorney General) will be hotly contested. In Johnson County, we’ll be electing a new State Senator, since Senator Caskey is term-limited, as well as State Representatives for the 3 districts that include parts of the county. Locally, the Eastern and Western Commissioners will face the voters, as will several other of our county officials.

Why is this important right now, since the primary election isn’t until August? Candidate filing opens this Tuesday, February 24th, and runs through March 30th. Now is the time to consider if you want to get really involved in local matters. Any registered voter can file for any of these positions under any of the three recognized political parties: Libertarian, Democrat or Republican. For state offices, there’s a fee and you have to file in Jefferson City. For county offices, file at the County Courthouse for free. Of course, there are financial disclosure forms and reports on campaign contributions and spending that have to be made for any of these candidacies; it’s important that the voters know who, if anyone, owns their elected officials.

If you want to get involved on a somewhat lower level, you can file for a Precinct Committeeperson position for the political party of your choice. Each of the three parties is supposed to elect a man and a woman from each precinct to serve on its County Committee. These committees select representatives for district party committees at the legislative, senatorial, and judicial levels, as well as the state committee. These committees are important because they select the party’s candidate for special elections when a seat becomes vacant. One advantage to running for a party committee is that you don’t have to file financial forms and, if uncontested, you’re elected without even appearing on the ballot.

If you don’t like any of the parties, you can join an effort to add a party by petition at the state or even the county level. You can find the rules at the Secretary of State’s website or by asking the County Clerk. Whatever your persuasion, why not get involved?