Macon voters approved the city’s $80 million water and sewer revenue bond question Tuesday by 74 votes, 808 to 734, according to unofficial results from the Macon County Clerk’s office.
The question passed with 52.40 percent of the vote to 47.60 percent opposed. It asked whether the city may issue up to $80 million in combined waterworks and sewerage system revenue bonds, repaid solely from system revenue rather than a property tax, as the Chronicle reported before the election.
Because they are revenue bonds for a city water and sewer system, they needed only a simple majority, under Article VI, Section 27 of the Missouri Constitution. General obligation bonds repaid with property taxes need four-sevenths of the vote, about 57.1 percent, at a general election.
Macon Municipal Utilities attributes $50 million of the request to the water plant and $30 million to the sewer plant. Residential customers using 4,000 gallons a month would pay about $52.66 more once rate increases tied to the bonds are fully phased in, according to figures the utility posted in September.
Absentee voters favored the bond more strongly than Election Day voters. It carried 144 to 120 among absentee ballots and 664 to 614 at the polls, according to the clerk’s report.
The clerk’s report, posted at 9:40 p.m. Tuesday and unchanged as of 8 a.m. Wednesday, showed 11 of 12 Election Day precincts and all 12 absentee precincts reporting. The Missouri secretary of state’s results showed all 12 Macon County precincts reporting by Wednesday morning, but the state does not report city questions. In countywide races, the state’s complete count ran no more than three votes ahead of the clerk’s report. All results are unofficial until the county certifies them.
The clerk’s report shows 4,945 ballots cast countywide, 4,324 on Election Day and 621 absentee.
Every county office on the ballot was uncontested, and each Republican nominee won with more than 98 percent, with write-ins making up the rest, according to the clerk’s report. Kristen Harvey received 4,371 votes for recorder of deeds, Kristen Burks 4,337 for associate circuit judge, Krista Bruno 4,313 for treasurer, and Rhonda Anno 4,330 for collector.
Josh Meisner received 4,203 votes for prosecuting attorney, Twila L. Halley-Osborn 4,372 for circuit clerk, Tammy Perkins 4,381 for county clerk, and Dean Still 4,276 for presiding commissioner.
In contested races on the county ballot, Macon County voters backed Republicans by wide margins, according to the secretary of state. Kelly Gatts won 70.86 percent in the county in the race for state representative in the 6th District, over Democrat Robert Johnson at 23.07 percent and Libertarian John Davison at 6.07 percent. Gatts won the district with 66.72 percent.
Republican Greg Sharpe carried the county with 75.59 percent over Democrat Nick Miller in the 18th Senate District and won the district with 71.37 percent. Republican Chris Stigall took 73.32 percent in the county in the 6th Congressional District race and won the district with 58.65 percent.
The clerk’s report lists no separate questions for La Plata, Atlanta, Callao, or Bevier.
Macon County voters split from the rest of Missouri on four of the five statewide ballot measures. A separate story has those results.