Many of your readers maybe unaware that two candidates were omitted from most of the absentee ballots cast in Henry County. Both the Libertarian Party and the Constitution Party candidates for the 4th Congressional District were not added a reader in another county noticed the omission in your paper and called it to a candidate's attention. However, by that time a substantial number of the 1453 Henry Countians who voted absentee had been deprived of the opportunity to vote for one of the omitted candidates.

While I commend your County Clerk for getting the ballots reprinted on such short notice, there are several ways the mistake (and costly reprinting of ballots) could have been avoided. The easiest way would be vigilance by local Henry County libertarians. I know there are some, since 54 people voted a straight Libertarian Party ticket. Some of these people who feel strongly enough to vote a straight ticket for a third party ought to get involved.

The Libertarian Party, as a recognized party in Missouri, is entitled to form county committees, just like the Democrats and Republicans. The easiest way would have been to file for township/precinct committeeman back in March. However, it's still easy to get involved; just contact the Missouri Libertarian Party at 1-877-vote-4-us or see the website at www.lpmo.org. There are active Libertarians nearby in Johnson County who'd be happy to help you.