What are the main responsibilities of the Missouri Secretary of State?

 The Elections Division of the Office of the Secretary of State is responsible for administering all statewide elections, initiative petitions, and making known the rules governing elections and electronic voting systems.

Missouri's elections are decentralized, and the state is composed of 116 local election jurisdictions. Each jurisdiction is led by an elected County Clerk or a Board of Election Commissioners, which are appointed by the Governor. In addition to conducting local, state and federal elections, local election authorities are responsible for the registration of voters and maintenance of voter registration records.

The Secretary of State follows and implements election law as set forth in Chapters 115 and 116 in the Revised Statutes of Missouri.

 The Records and Archives Division of the office of the Secretary of State is responsible for managing both current and historical records of the state to ensure those records are accessible to Missouri citizens. It is also responsible for assisting local governments in records preservation and management. 

  The Missouri State Library promotes the development and improvement of library services throughout the state, provides direct library and information services in support of Missouri state government, and strives to ensure all Missourians have equal access to library services. 

 The Securities Division is organized into three sections: 

Investor Education, seeking to prevent and reduce investor harm by educating investors about the risks of investing, which includes the Vulnerable Citizens Services Unit (VCSU). 

Registration, seeking to ensure that investment professionals are qualified and compliant with securities laws and regulations and fostering capital formation through the review of securities offerings; and

 Enforcement, receiving complaints, tips, and referrals, conducting investigations and initiating actions to remedy violations.  The Securities Division seeks to serve all Missourians from investors to investment professionals. 

 The Business Services Division is committed to making it easier to do business in Missouri. The Division has four primary units. 

The Corporations Unit handles the creation and maintenance of all business entities doing business in Missouri. 

The Notaries & Commissions Unit performs an array of functions including commissioning notaries public.

 The UCC Unit processes personal property lien filings. 

The Safe at Home address confidentiality program helps protect victims of domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, human trafficking, stalking, or other crimes who fear for their safety by authorizing the use of a designated address on new public records. 

 The Publications Division handles a variety of printing and graphic arts responsibilities for the office. They are responsible for collecting, compiling, designing and editing the Official Manual State of Missouri (Blue Book), Missouri Roster, General Assembly Roster and the Constitution State of Missouri. They also compile the Election Laws Handbook, Notary Public Handbook and numerous other brochures, newsletters and forms for the office.