District hot seat sought after by many
The candidates range from inexperienced to seasoned.
Published March 4, 2008
Missouri’s Ninth Congressional district seat is not only the most sought-after office of Missouri’s U.S districts, but also the most contested race. And the legislative experience of the candidates vying for the seat in Missouri’s largest Congressional district, which includes MU, varies from seasoned statesman to relative political enigma.
U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof, R-Mo., has represented the economically and politically diverse Ninth district for 12 years. Last month, after Gov. Matt Blunt announced he would not seek re-election, Hulshof announced he would run for governor. In the weeks since, names of potential hopefuls expressing interest in running for Hulshof’s job spewed from both sides of the aisle.
Last Tuesday, the picture became clearer as candidates began to file with the Missouri Secretary of State.
Missouri Tourism Director Blaine Luetkemeyer said he would officially file for candidacy at the end of March when he said his duties as Tourism Director would be complete.
Luetkemeyer, a former member of the General Assembly, said he connects with voters in the Ninth district, which he said is strongly agricultural.
“I think, philosophically, I’m right in line with the conservative values of the district,” Luetkemeyer said.
Luetkemeyer said he sees national defense and the war on terror as the “big issues” in this year’s election. He also said Congress should cooperate more with President George Bush on certain issues.
The official GOP candidates in the race are State Rep. Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis; State Rep. Danielle Moore, R-Fulton; former MU football player Brock Olivo; and St. Peters, Mo., resident Dan Bishir.
Olivo and Bishir have never held a state office, and Olivo has never voted in an official election, according to research by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Bishir has been a plan reviewer and a building inspector for the City of St. Peters for almost 13 years. He said he is concerned the “regular guy” is being left out of politics.
“I’m such an underdog right now,” Bishir said. “I’ve got enough smarts and enough common sense to help the people of the Ninth get what they want.”
Jeff Schaeperkoetter, who has served in both houses of the Missouri General Assembly and as an Eastern District circuit judge, officially filed as a Democratic candidate last Tuesday.
Schaeperkoetter, who obtained his law degree at MU, said his advantage in the race is the familiarity he has with the people in the electorate.
“I think I know the people of the Ninth district,” Schaeperkoetter said.
He said the economy and the federal budget would be part of the central focus of his campaign platform.
Ken Jacob, who serves general counsel for State Auditor Susan Montee, announced last Tuesday he would run as a Democrat in the race, but has decided to stall in officially filing for candidacy because he said he wants his name to be the last on the list, and he wants to keep any attention surrounding his official filing to be independent from that of the other candidates.
Jacob, who represented Columbia for more than 20 years in the Missouri House and Senate, said his strengths in the race are his experience and his role as an advocate for change, as well as his propensity for being a “straight talker.”
“I’ve got more experience than the rest of the candidates combined,” Jacob said. “And I’ve wanted change for 20 years.”
Jacob, an MU graduate, was the original sponsor of the Bright Flight program, which awards scholarships to top high school students in Missouri. While he did not say which issues would be central to his platform, he said education would be high on the list.
“Priorities need to change. Policies need to change,” Jacob said. “Just about everything needs to change.”
Jacob said he would continue to work for Montee through the campaign.
State Rep. Judy Baker, D-Columbia, who announced in November she was interested in running for the Ninth District seat, officially filed to run last Tuesday. She said she is not concerned with the recent addition of more hopefuls in the race.
“I think a good strong primary leads to a good strong general, and that’s what a good democracy is all about,” Baker said.
Also running on the Democratic side are Marion County Presiding Commissioner Lyndon Bode and former General Assembly member Steve Gaw.