PRIMED FOR VOTES

Voters could be the real winners in Missouri's presidential primary on March 7, says Missouri Secretary of State Bekki Cook.

Cook, the state's chief elections official, predicts that more than a million Missourians will vote in the Republican and Democratic primaries. That amounts to about 30 percent of the state's 3.5 million registered voters.

Cook wishes even more of the state's registered voters would get out and vote. But she said a 30 percent turnout is still good when compared to the state's previous caucus system.

In the past, party caucuses have been held to elect delegates to the national conventions.

Only about 2 percent of Missouri voters participated in the caucuses, Cook said.

A primary, she said, noticeably increases participation and makes it a more democratic process.

The March 7 primary will be the first in Missouri since 1988. The 1988 primary was a one-time affair, prompted by Missouri congressman Richard Gephardt's candidacy for president.

The upcoming primary will the state's first permanent primary. Cook successfully lobbied the Legislature to establish a permanent primary. She said voters wanted a primary.

Cook said the primary should boost the public's involvement and interest in the political process.

In the 1988 primary, about 930,000 Missourians or about 30 percent of the registered voters went to the polls.

Twenty-seven percent of Cape Girardeau County's registered voters went to the polls in the 1988 March primary. There were 4,614 Republican and 3,329 Democratic votes cast.

This time around, the county has more registered voters. Cape Girardeau County Clerk Rodney Miller predicts about 25 to 30 percent of the county's 46,418 registered voters will go to the polls. A 30 percent turnout would mean nearly 14,000 voters would cast ballots.

Miller said that would be a good turnout, particularly since Missourians aren't accustomed to voting in a presidential primary.

The popular vote received by Republican and Democratic candidates will be used in the selection of delegates for the parties' national conventions.

On the Republican side, it's a winner-take-all affair. Thirty-five delegates and the same number of alternates will be selected through congressional district conventions and the GOP's state convention to attend the national convention in Philadelphia, July 31 through Aug. 4. All will be bound to vote for Missouri's GOP primary winner on the first ballot.

On the Democratic side, delegates will be chosen based on the percentage of votes that the various presidential candidates in that party received. Some of the delegates will be chosen because of their party positions. They won't be pledged to any particular candidate. They include Missouri Democratic members of Congress and the governor.

In all, the Missouri Democratic Party will send 92 delegates and 13 alternates to the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, Calif., scheduled for Aug. 14-17.

.But while the media attention is focused on the Republican and Democratic races, Missouri voters also will have a number of third-party candidates to choose from in the primary.

There are 18 candidates from five political parties on the Missouri ballot.

Punch-card ballots will be used in Cape Girardeau County. Voters will be able to choose from five different party ballots. "There will be five different colored cards," said Miller, the county clerk.

Each voter will be allowed to choose the party ballot he or she wants.

Miller said the contested races in both the Republican and Democratic parties should generate voter interest.

Vice President Al Gore faces a challenge from Bill Bradley, a former Missourian, on the Democratic side. On the Republican side, Texas Gov. George W. Bush is in a tough battle with Arizona Sen. John McCain.

"I think it is important that people go out and vote," said Miller.

Democracy, however, comes at a price. The presidential primary will cost the state an estimated $3 million. Most of that will go to reimburse counties for their election expenses.

Cape Girardeau County expects to spend $35,000 on the election, which includes the cost of punch-card pages, ballots and other supplies, as well as the expense of hiring election judges.

Cook said the primary could help attract more young voters, particularly those in high school who have just turned 18.

Missouri is holding its primary on the same day as 10 other states, most of them in the Northeast. Missouri is one of only two Midwestern states holding primaries on March 7.

Cook said little public attention has been focused on Missouri's primary because the media attention has been focused on the early primary states like New Hampshire, South Carolina and Michigan. But she said that should change as the March primary approaches.