The August 2 primary election in Missouri brought a mix of change and status quo, with new alliances having at least partial success, hinting at more change ahead in future election cycles.
In the City of St. Louis, the criminal justice infrastructure was changed by voters overnight with the Democratic primary victory of Kimberly Gardner, who will be the city’s first black circuit attorney – no one filed for the office for another party. She will be the first new circuit attorney since the beginning of the century, as she will replace Jennifer Joyce (who took office in 2000) after defeating Mary Pat Carl, who had Joyce’s endorsement, by a 2:1 margin – with two other opponents in the race.
In St. Louis County, there is a new balance of power on the County Council after the Democratic primary victory of Rochelle Walton Gray in District 4, who crushed incumbent Mike O’Mara by more than 4,000 votes. North County now has an unprecedented degree of African-American representation on the council, as O’Mara was first elected in 2000 and succeeded his father in the seat.
O’Mara’s loss is a blow to the dominion of North County labor in North County politics and to St. Louis County Executive Steve Stenger’s influence on the County Council. With Hazel Erby already serving in District 1, after the general election St. Louis County will – for the first time – have two black council members.
In other races, however, change candidates were defeated, sometimes by crushing margins. U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay – who was featured on an O’Mara campaign mailer – handily defeated a challenge from Maria Chappelle-Nadal, the term-limited state senator who emerged as a community activist in Ferguson and on nuclear waste issues. Clay more than doubled her vote total, beating her by more than 30,000 votes. North County Labor thus retained its congressional ally in District 1.
In the city, an attempt to take over the Democratic Party at the cellular – committeeman and committeewoman – level had mixed results. Brian Wahby, once the gatekeeper for city Democrats and still highly connected in the party at the state and national levels, lost his Ward 7 committeeman post to Marty Murray by a 10-point margin. But Rasheen Aldridge and Megan Betts failed in their bid to unseat Rodney Hubbard Sr. and Penny Hubbard in their Ward 5 committee posts. Overall, the insurgents counted six committee wins (the others were Sara Johnson, Bryan Walsh, Madeline Buthold, Annie Rice and Wendy Campbell) – that is, six out of 56.
In a surprising battle between two veterans of elected politics, state Rep. Karla May defeated St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones as Ward 26 committeewoman by a decisive margin of 13 points. May got a late-minute push by Clay, and Jones – who was not contested in her reelection as treasurer – is now viewed in the political context of a looming election for an open mayoral seat.
The mayor, elected next year, will have appointing powers over the police commissioner, completing a total re-set of the criminal justice infrastructure in the city (not taking into account the judges in the city, who are appointed by the governor via the Missouri Non-Partisan Court Plan).
Though it’s much less important than circuit attorney or police commissioner, there is a new sheriff in town: Vernon Betts will be the city’s first new sheriff since 1989. (Though there was a one-candidate Republic primary for sheriff, no Democratic primary victor in the city has a meaningful challenge in the general election.) Betts, who is African-American, beat Joe Vaccaro, 23rd Ward alderman, by 12 points, even with two other black candidates in the race.
Though largely a patronage office, the sheriff’s office looms large in the black community because its staff transports people mired in the criminal justice, and because longtime Sheriff James Murphy – whom Betts nearly beat four years ago – was so complacent when two black deputies complained after white deputies hung a noose in the workplace in 2006.
Steve Roberts made sure that Kim Gardner leaving the state Legislature did not leave the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus without a single attorney elected to office. He decisively won a four-way race for House District 77. Another promising newcomer – Cora Faith Walker, a public health and policy advocate from Ferguson who had The American’s endorsement– won the primary in House District 74.
Two Ferguson protestors who ran for office – one running low for state representative, the other running high for U.S. Senate – lost by very tight and gigantic margins, respectively.
Bruce Franks lost to incumbent state Rep. Penny Hubbard in District 78 by less than 100 votes. It’s a narrow loss that Franks will challenge. Cori Bush – running against Jason Kander, who surprisingly has managed to outraise the incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Roy Blunt in some quarters – lost by 56 points or nearly 200,000 votes.
Not far behind her was Chief Wana Dubie, who has a marijuana leaf tattooed on his face. With his name at the top of ballots in Missouri, the cannabis legalization advocate lightened the mood of many Missouri voters.
Another progressive who lost on Tuesday was Jake Zimmerman. Currently St. Louis County assessor, he had The American’s endorsement, but lost the Democratic primary for attorney general Teresa Hensley, from the west side of the state, by a six-point margin. In the general election she will face Josh Hawley, who destroyed Kurt Schaefer in the Republican primary by nearly 200,000 votes.
The American’s endorsed candidate fared better in the state treasurer’s race, where Judy Baker soundly defeated Pat Contreras by nearly 20 points. She faces one of the most difficult general election challenges in Eric Schmitt, a state senator from St. Louis County who had no Republican primary opponent.
Elsewhere on the top of the ticket, there were sure wins in the Democratic primary and drama on the Republican ticket. Chris Koster will face Eric Greitens – whose campaigns ads posed him as hunting for human beings (affiliated with ISIS) with an assault rifle – for governor. Russ Carnahan – vanquished son of a Democratic political dynasty coming out of retirement – will face Mike Parson for lieutenant governor. And former newscaster Robin Smith will face a son of a Republican political dynasty, John (Jay) Ashcroft for secretary of state.
