Missouri Finalizes November Ballot After Party Primaries

In the Aug. 6 partisan primary elections, Missouri voters finalized the field for November’s general election that will shape the Show Me State’s representation in Congress and state government.

Generally, Republicans will head into fall with a significant electoral advantage over Democrats in Missouri. No Democrat has won a statewide office since former Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway was elected in 2018.

Senate

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is up for reelection to a second term in office. He ran unopposed on the Republican Party ticket.

In November he will run against Lucas Kunce, who won the Democratic Party primary with 67.6 percent of the vote, according to the unofficial results published by the Missouri Secretary of State’s office on Aug. 7.

Kunce, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel, was a director of national security policy at the American Economic Liberties Project before running for the Senate in 2022.

House of Representatives

Every congressional district held its primary contest on Aug. 6. Generally, incumbent members of the House won their contests. Two results were notable.

In Missouri’s First Congressional District, Rep. Cori Bush lost to Wesley Bell, the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney, in the Democratic Party primary. According to the unofficial results published by the state, Bell captured about 51.2 percent of the vote in the heavily Democrat St. Louis jurisdiction.

The loss will end Bush’s run in Congress, which began in 2020. She was a member of the so-called Squad, a group of nine far-left House members. Another Squad member, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), lost his primary in June.

In November, Bell will run against Andrew Jones, who won the Republican primary. Jones, an executive vice president of business development and marketing at Southwest Electric Cooperative, previously ran for Congress in 2022.

In Missouri’s Third Congressional District, Bob Onder won the Republican primary with about 47.4 percent of the vote, according to the state. He will run against Bethany Mann, who took about 73.4 percent of the vote in the Democrat primary.

Onder, a Missouri state senator, was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. Mann is a technology specialist from St. Peters, Missouri, according to her campaign website.

Both are running to fill the seat vacated by retiring Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.) to represent the east-central Missouri district in Congress. Luetkemeyer has represented Missouri in the House since 2009.

Governor

Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe won the Republican Party primary with 39.4 percent of the vote. In November, he will run against Crystal Quade, the minority leader of the Missouri General Assembly’s House of Representatives. Quade won the Democratic Party primary with about 50.3 percent of the vote.

The governor’s mansion in Jefferson City is being vacated by Mike Parson, a Republican, who cannot run again due to term limits. The state has not had a Democrat governor since Jay Nixon left office in 2017.

Lieutenant Governor

In November, Republican Dave Wasinger will run against Democrat Richard Brown for the office of lieutenant governor. In Missouri, the second-highest member of the state’s executive branch is an elected position.

Wasinger, an attorney at corporate law firm Wasinger Daming LC, prevailed over Missouri state Sen. Lincoln Hough in the Republican Party primary with about 31.4 percent of the vote.

Missouri state Rep. Richard Brown won the Democratic Party primary with 64.9 percent of the vote.

Secretary of State

Missouri state Sen. Denny Hoskins will face off against Missouri state Rep. Barbara Phifer in the race to replace outgoing Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft. Ashcroft lost his bid for the Republican Party’s gubernatorial nomination on Aug. 6.

According to the state, Hoskins emerged from the crowded Republican Party primary field with about 24.4 percent of the vote. Phifer won with about 40.9 percent support.

State Treasurer

Missouri State Treasurer Vivek Malek, a Republican, secured his party’s nomination with 41.5 percent of the vote, according to the state.

He will run against Mark Osmack in November. Osmack, director of government relations at the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials, ran unopposed on the Democratic Party ticket.

Attorney General

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who was appointed to his office in 2022 by Parson, is seeking a full term in office. He won the Republican primary with about 63 percent of the vote, according to the state.

Bailey will run against Elad Gross, who ran unopposed on the Democrat ticket. Gross was an assistant attorney general under former Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster.