Obtain a Certificate of Nomination to File for Office

Candidates for Mayor, President of the Board of Aldermen, Comptroller, and Alderperson must submit a Certificate of Nomination.

A Certificate of Nomination is a petition signed by registered voters endorsing you as a candidate for office. The Certificate of Nomination must be submitted at the same time as your Declaration of Candidacy. 

Determine the number of signatures you will need to support your candidacy.

• A candidate for Alderperson needs at least two percent (2%) of the votes cast for Mayor at the last general municipal election in the ward in which the candidate intends to run for office. 
• A candidate for Mayor, Comptroller or President of the Board of Aldermen needs at least two percent (2%) of the votes cast for Mayor at the previous mayoral election.

Download and print the certificate of nomination for your candidacy. There are ten signature fields per page, so you will need multiple copies.

1. Obtain Signatures

You may obtain the signatures yourself and/or have campaign staff members or volunteers obtain them.

Each person signing the certificate must be a registered voter in the City of St. Louis (for Mayor, President of the Board of Aldermen, and Comptroller) or a registered voter in the ward in which the candidate is running (for Alderperson).

All signatures must be original, not electronic, signatures.

2. Notarize Signatures

The individual who gathers the signatures on a given page on behalf of the candidate must sign that page before a notary, attesting to the fact that the registered voters signed that page of the certificate in the presence of the person gathering the signatures.

3. Present Certificate to Board of Elections

Your Certificate of Nomination must be filed with the Board of Election Commissioners at the same time as your Declaration of Candidacy. Upon filing, Board staff will review the certificate and verify that it contains the requisite number of signatures on its face and provide you with a receipt confirming submission.

Bring your certificate, your filing fee and your candidate clearance form to:

Board of Election Commissioners
300 N. Tucker Blvd.
St. Louis, Missouri 63101

Board staff will verify each signature on your certificate to confirm that the signatories are registered voters in the City of St. Louis (for Mayor, President of the Board of Aldermen, and Comptroller) or registered voters in the applicable ward (for Alderperson).

If your certificate contains fewer than the required number of verified signatures, you will be notified and given an opportunity to correct the deficiency. You may supplement your certificate with additional signatures at any time up to the close of the filing period. Please note, however, that you will lose your place on the ballot until the deficiency has been corrected. Your ultimate position on the ballot will be determined by when the Board of Election Commissioners receives the requisite number of verified signatures.

All deficiencies must be corrected prior to the close of the filing period, so it is in your best interest to begin this process early.

Please also be aware that the number of verified signatures on your Certificate of Nomination may be determinative beyond simply qualifying for the ballot. Under the current election code, if two candidates receive an equal number of votes in either the primary or general election, the tie will be resolved in favor of the candidate with the greater number of verified nomination signatures. For this reason, gathering signatures well in excess of the minimum is strongly advisable.