The stakes are high in the race for Missouri governor. While the winner will be the leader of the state’s executive branch, he will also be the leader of his party in the state. Notwithstanding some past differences with Jay Nixon, we strongly endorse him for governor. Progress for the African-American community in Missouri would be enhanced with an administration that strongly opposes the Republican’s assertive right wing agenda.
Nixon has the passion, management skills and knowledge of the state’s bureaucracy that will aid him in moving Missouri in a new direction. He is a strong supporter of public education. Nixon opposes vouchers and tax credits for use in private K-12 schools (he refused the generous financial support of Rex Sinquefield, who is determined to enact his school choice agenda at all costs), but Nixon does accept charter schools in principle.
Nixon’s agenda includes strengthening higher education (we support his initiative to provide “debt-free” college education for residents who meet required academic standards), boosting the state’s economic development growth and encouraging efforts to make Missouri a strong participant in life science research. He promises to spend $200 million more a year to ensure health care for tens of thousands of children that would add on additional federal matching funds.
Unlike the past, Nixon has come into the African-American community, engaged our leadership and asked for our vote based on shared aspirations for change. A long-time attorney general, he has the funding and name recognition, and he is running an energetic campaign against Kenny Hulshof. His opponent is tied to the discredited Matt Blunt and George W. Bush administrations. Given this state’s political landscape, Nixon will probably run ahead of Barack Obama, who has a very close race in Missouri. Yet we need to have the strongest support of the entire Democratic slate n voting all the way down the ticket n to ensure more changes that will better our community.
An able Democrat in the governor’s seat would provide a major impetus for regaining control of the state Legislature that is dominated by right-wing Republicans. A Democrat majority in the Legislature would significantly empower black legislators. We strongly endorse JAY NIXON FOR GOVERNOR.
The incumbent Republican Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder has cultivated strong St. Louis ties, and many Missouri Democrats n including the Democrat running for lieutenant governor, Sam Page n could learn from his attention to this city’s concerns. He listens to what is needed from state government to turn St. Louis around and make it the city that will truly drive this state forward. Importantly, he did not wait until election season to venture into the black community. But we find ourselves unable to get past Kinder’s status as an incumbent Republican in the disastrous right-wing administration of Matt Blunt, who will go down in state history as the regional equivalent of George W. Bush. We think Kinder has a role to play in St. Louis and Missouri, but not in a state government led by Jay Nixon. As for Sam Page and his tenure in the state House, he regularly has scored a perfect 100 percent on Missouri ProVote’s progressive scorecard. He is a medical doctor who would be a policy leader in revamping Missouri’s woeful public health system, and he would help Nixon lead the Democratic Party in a state where Republicans likely will still hold majorities in both houses of the Legislature. We applaud Kinder for his hard work in St. Louis and advocacy for some of our concerns, but we strongly endorse SAM PAGE FOR LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR.
In the last year, we learned how important it is to have a competent and engaged professional in the office of Secretary of State in Missouri. The office’s responsibility in crafting ballot language concerning such crucial issues as affirmative action and voter ID n and in overseeing the election process during an historic campaign season n has made this one of the most important offices in Missouri government, and we are fortunate to have had Robin Carnahan running it. Carnahan has worked very hard under intense pressure from right-wing Republicans, and her efforts will be remembered as crucial in protecting the public good at a critical time. Though we expect she has higher office in her sights, we think Missouri would be well served if she were to remain in her current position for many years to come. We strongly endorse ROBIN CARNAHAN FOR SECRETARY OF STATE.
State treasurer n Missouri’s chief financial officer n is one of the least understood and discussed statewide positions, but in this election, it offers a clear choice. Clint Zweifel is eminently qualified for the post n he has an MBA in finance and serves as the ranking member on the Ways and Means Committee, the Joint Committee on Tax Policy and the Special Committee on Tax Reform. His voting record in the state House has been impeccably progressive and n as important n he has earned a reputation as a hard worker and sincere colleague. This year Zweifel was recognized by the Missouri Progressive Vote Coalition with its Outstanding Legislator Award “for his leadership on fiscal policy and for standing up for working families.” Before running for state treasurer, he was research and education director for Teamsters Local 688, a highly progressive and inclusive union. Moreover, his opponent was House budget chair in 2005 when Republicans instituted sweeping health care cuts and has campaigned against Zweifel as someone who represents urban areas n that’s us n as “special interests.” We strongly urge you to vote your way down the ballot and vote for Zweifel. We strongly endorse CLINT ZWEIFEL FOR STATE TREASURER.
The choice for state attorney general involves two candidates who were once considered to be moderate Republicans, a vanishing breed in Missouri and around the nation. One traded political parties because his opinions as a moderate Republican were dismissed by right-wing zealots. The other candidate traded his moderate Republican banner for the chance to be leader of the state Senate and locked arms with GOP extremists n the only path to leadership in that party. The converted Democrat is Chris Koster; the conservative Republican is Mike Gibbons. While Koster sided with the Blunt administration on several disturbing issues, including the axing of Medicaid benefits for hundreds of thousands of Missourians, he saw a change in the Missouri Republican Party that was unacceptable. He gallantly tried to fight for Republicans of the style of former U.S. Sen. John Danforth and was rebuked. The dangerous partisan politics of Blunt and Ed Martin rendered him silent, so he left the party. Gibbons was known as a respected and reasonable legislator by the people he represented in Kirkwood and Des Peres. But he let his zeal for higher office lead him to side with conservatives on many issues, including the conceal and carry bill that his vote made state law. More than 70 percent of the people he represented voted against him on this issue. Gibbons’ vote proved that he is more interested in acceding to right-wing politics and holding statewide office than he is in representing all of the citizens of Missouri. Moreover, Koster has worked hard in St. Louis and in the black community in particular and pledged an inclusive leadership team in his office and honest attention to violations of civil rights. We strongly endorse CHRIS KOSTER FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL.
