Amendment 8 would move the office of county sheriff from state statute into the Missouri Constitution and narrow the ways a sitting sheriff can be removed.
Most of what it says is already law. Missouri statutes require each county to elect a sheriff to a four-year term and set out the sheriff’s duties. The amendment would put that requirement in the constitution, along with a list of duties: the sheriff is the county’s conservator of the peace, serves court process unless the county’s sheriff does not do so as of Aug. 28, 2026, and commits offenders to jail. It would also recognize the office as part of the administration of justice.
The change that matters most is removal. Under the amendment, an elected sheriff could be removed from office only by a writ of quo warranto initiated by the attorney general. Quo warranto is a court action that challenges a person’s right to hold public office. Under current law, the attorney general, a circuit attorney, or a county prosecuting attorney can bring one. The amendment would leave that power with the attorney general alone for sheriffs.
St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and St. Charles County are exempt. St. Louis County replaced its sheriff with a county police department in 1955, and St. Charles County shifted primary law enforcement to a county police department in 2012. In Macon County and every other county, the amendment would apply in full.
Sen. Jill Carter sponsored Senate Joint Resolution 87, and the legislature passed it May 15. Similar measures failed to reach the ballot in 2024 and 2025.
Supporters say the measure protects the elected sheriff as the county’s chief law enforcement officer, keeps the office from being abolished or merged into an appointed police department, and shields sheriffs from removal efforts driven by local politics.
Opponents say the measure locks into the constitution rules that the legislature can now adjust by statute, and that taking the county prosecutor out of the removal process means a sheriff accused of misconduct could be removed only if the attorney general chooses to act.
ON THE BALLOT
Official ballot title:
Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to support law enforcement by preserving the right of citizens to elect a county sheriff, prohibiting the removal of a county sheriff except by a writ of quo warranto, and recognizing the office of sheriff as part of the administration of justice?
A YES VOTE requires every county except St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and St. Charles County to elect a sheriff every four years; places the sheriff’s duties in the constitution; and allows removal only by a quo warranto action brought by the attorney general.
A NO VOTE keeps the current statutes on sheriffs’ election, duties, and removal, which the legislature can change by law.
COST: State and local governments estimate no costs or savings. Does not raise or lower taxes.
HOW IT GOT HERE: Senate Joint Resolution 87 (Sen. Jill Carter), passed May 15, 2026.