Politics & Government
Clayton's Carnahan Faces Clay for 1st District
U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan represents portions of Clayton and Richmond Heights. Now, he's competing against U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay, a fellow Democrat, for the 1st District.
The kickoff of Missouri’s biennial filing day is often littered with surprises. But this year’s iteration may have taken the cake.
The biggest news is . The St. Louis city Democrat had considered running , but instead decided to enter into a race that will have him battling U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO).
Carnahan serves as representative for the 3rd District, which includes at least a portion of and . The 3rd District will be swallowed by surrounding districts as a result of redistricting, the St. Louis Beacon reported.
Find out what's happening in Clayton-Richmond Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
That race will be closely watched, since the district that encompasses all of St. Louis city and some of St. Louis County has a heavy Democratic lean. In essence, winning the Democratic primary is tantamount to election.
An auxiliary effect of Carnahan’s decision is that there probably won’t be a major Democratic candidate running in the 2nd District. That’s the area where former Missouri Republican Chairwoman Ann Wagner and former Webster Groves Councilman Randy Jotte filed Tuesday to run.
Find out what's happening in Clayton-Richmond Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Those two candidates, who had announced their intention to seek the seat long ago, will be joined by a pair of lesser-known candidates from St. Charles County. St. Peters residents John Morris and James O. Baker filed to run as Republicans in the district that encompasses St. Louis, St. Charles and Jefferson counties.
Baker, by the way, got 17 percent in 2010 when he ran in a GOP primary against U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO). Luetkemeyer, who didn’t have a Democratic opponent in 2010 after a narrow victory in 2008, ended up racking up 83 percent of the vote in that primary.
That doesn’t mean that the winner of the 2nd District primary will run unopposed. Three Democrats, St. Louis resident Bill Haas, Eureka resident George Weber and Ballwin resident Marshall Works, signed up on the first day of filing. But a candidate without name recognition or a propensity to raise a lot of funds could have trouble gaining traction in the GOP-leaning district.
Click here to see a list of candidates that have signed up so far for statewide office, the state legislature and the judiciary. And for information’s sake, here are interactive maps of the new House and Senate districts.
Also of note in Missouri politics:
- Lincoln Day festivities planned Saturday: St. Louis County Republicans will hold their annual Lincoln Day celebration Saturday at 5:30 p.m. at the Doubletree Hotel in Chesterfield. Lincoln Days are usually the preeminent gathering of the year for local Republicans.
- Stay your Senate filing, please: Some candidates for state Senate from St. Louis County may not have a definite idea of where they will be running. That’s because a tentative state Senate map won’t become finalized until after a bipartisan commission votes again on the plan in March. Secretary of State Robin Carnahan has urged candidates to hold off on filing for state Senate races until the map is officially approved. Some took her advice. Others filed anyway.
- Blue Book 2.0?: Carnahan's office in late February put out the state's Blue Book in digital form, the only option available. The comprehensive guide contains a cavalcade of information about the state's executive, legislative and judicial branches. Included are short biographies of all of the state's officials.