The Butler County Democratic Central Committee isn’t technically dead, but it does appear to be on life support.
Jean Cross of Poplar Bluff said she spent most of her life not paying attention to politics.
“I took things for granted,” she explained. “I voted both sides. I voted for both Bushes, but I also voted for Clinton and Obama. I always focused on individuals.”
But, Cross explained, that all changed in 2016.
“I thought that Trump was such a terrible person with terrible character, and I just couldn’t believe our country elected him,” Cross remarked. “I started to realize just how serious things were getting after that.”
Cross said she took more interest by the 2020 election year and started to become more involved, but she had to step away to care for her late husband.
“So I’ve just recently started to become active again,” Cross noted. “And we need help.”
Cross went on to explain that the Butler County Democratic Central Committee has several empty seats, and time is running out to fill those seats before the next election.
“Filling those seats is so important in order to disseminate information to voters,” Cross remarked. “I was recently speaking to a group of older ladies who happen to be Democrats, and they didn’t realize that the primary process had changed.”
Cross was referring to the law that was signed into effect by Gov. Mike Parson in 2022, which replaced the previous primary election system with caucuses. In the new system, voters assemble in a public setting to determine who they want to represent them.
“Those ladies hadn’t heard about it,” Cross explained. “And they didn’t realize that the Democrat primary will take place on Saturday, March 23, from 8 a.m. to noon.”
The last chairman of the Butler County Democratic Central Committee was Kevin Ellis, and the vice chair was Keith French. Cross said French had explained to her that no one was available to fill the seats. When reached for comment, French acknowledged there has been no activity within the committee, and he said the last committee meeting was in fall of 2020.
“The only people to show up for that meeting was myself and my wife,” French noted.
“I have spoken to former member of the county committee, and there are various reasons they stopped,” Cross said. “Some stopped for family reason, or because they became busy with other things. Either way, those seats are empty and we are quickly approaching the deadline for those seats to be filled.”
The last day to file for a seat on the Butler County Democratic Central Committee is March 26. There is no cost to file for a seat, and filing is done at the county clerk’s office.
“We’ll never know what is going on at the state level without a local committee,” Ross remarked. “It’s important for us to come together and organize.”
When asked if she had any guesses as to why the Democrat party has become so weakened, she said it could be a number of different things.
“I think some people feel like they have been ignored by the system, and maybe some other people just don’t think it matters,” Cross stated. “But, nothing changes if nothing changes. I understand that some people want to be vocal about their beliefs in order avoid conflict with family and friends; but sometimes that’s unavoidable.”
Cross acknowledged there is a sizable age gap in the voting public and she believes reaching out to the younger voters is necessary.
“Generation Z is starting to show some interest, and many of them are concerned with social justice,” Cross noted. “And that’s great. Many of them have some level of influence through social media, and that’s also good. But it’s also important to be involved at the local level, because that’s where we live.”
The Missouri Democrat primary will occur from 8 a.m.-noon Saturday, March 23, at the New Life Christian Church at 301 N. Main St., in Poplar Bluff.