Wagner wins reelection by nearly 30K votes
State Sen. Jill Schupp lost her bid to oust incumbent Republican Congresswoman Ann Wagner in the race for Missouri’s Second Congressional District.
With 100% of precincts reporting, unofficial results from the St. Louis County Board of Elections show Wagner with 230,617 votes, or 52% of the vote. Schupp received 201,520 votes, for a total of 45.4% of the vote, and Libertarian Martin Schulte with 2.6% with 11,558 votes.
Schupp spoke on the phone with Wagner Tuesday night to concede. She then released a statement.
“These are painful, divided times for our state and our nation. The partisan bickering and name calling must come to an end. It is incumbent upon our leaders to reach across the aisle and work for the people who have elected to represent them,” Schupp stated.
“This race might be over, but what our campaign stood for will endure. Being your nominee has been the greatest honor of my life and my commitment to protecting people with pre-existing conditions, making our communities safer from gun violence, and creating an economy that works for all of us remains steadfast.”
The St. Louis American endorsed Schupp, who made access to health care a centerpiece of her campaign.
After the primary in August, in which Schupp tallied 103,164 votes to Wagner’s 63,686, the Democratic candidate had a decent chance at flipping the congressional seat, much like she did when she won the open 24th District state Senate in 2014 running against Jay Ashcroft.
“I’m humbled and honored to once again represent you in Congress. I promise to continue fighting for our conservative, Missouri values and always putting Missourians first and politics second,” Wagner wrote Tuesday night on Facebook.