County Clerk Basler resigns for health

Ste. Genevieve County Clerk Kay Basler has announced plans to resign from her position prior to the end of her current term, which expires Dec. 31.

Basler announced the news Monday during the Ste. Genevieve County Commission meeting held at the county courthouse.

She said she is leaving her seat for health reasons.

As of Monday, Basler had not yet determined when her last official day would be, but she said she would be leaving at the end of August or September.

Basler already had announced plans to retire at the close of the term she is now serving.

Three candidates — two county employees who currently work in the county clerk’s office and a former state representative — are vying for Basler’s seat in the upcoming Aug. 5 primary election. In the primary, voters will determine which party candidates will continue on to the Nov. 4 general election.

All three candidates who signed up to run for county clerk in the primary are Democrats.

The individual who ultimately wins the seat will take office January 1.

Basler also announced at Monday’s meeting that former Ste. Genevieve Mayor Kathleen Waltz, who currently is serving as Democratic Central Committeewoman for Ste. Genevieve Township, has been hired on a temporary full-time basis as a deputy county clerk.

Waltz already has started her new position. In it, she is acting as office manager, overseeing operations at the County Clerk’s Office. She also will be overseeing absentee voting, which began June 24 and continues through Aug. 4.