MoInd 📰

The right-wing Freedom Caucus fared well in Missouri’s GOP primaries Tuesday, grabbing its first statewide nomination and displaying the reach of its message in other races. State Sen. Denny Hoskins of Warrensburg emerged from an eight-person field to get the Republican nomination for Secretary of State. Freedom Caucus member state Sen. Bill Eigel finished second […]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Education said Wednesday it will use a phased rollout to launch the 2025-26 form to apply for federal financial student aid, which will make the application fully available two months later than usual. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid — better known as FAFSA — will be available to […]

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey wants to dismiss his lawsuit against Jackson County a day before he was set to answer questions under oath about a potential ethical breach in the case.  Bailey, who is suing the county over its property assessment process, on Tuesday asked the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western District […]

Patrick McKenna, director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, on Wednesday said he will leave his post after almost nine years on the job. McKenna announced his decision near the end of a meeting of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission in Poplar Bluff. He did not give a date for his departure and did […]

WASHINGTON — Congress plans to spend just 35 days between now and the end of the year in the nation’s capital, a fitting end to one of the least productive sessions in decades. The deeply divided 118th Congress so far has placed just 78 public laws on the books, a fraction of the hundreds enacted […]

Evictions are a window into America’s rental housing crisis: In 2022, more than half of all renters spent over a third of their income on housing, and millions of tenants who miss rent payments are evicted each year. When renters are kicked out of their homes, the consequences can be disastrous. Families might lose their […]

Every incumbent Missouri senator challenged in Tuesday’s primaries won renomination, but Republican voters rejected sitting House members in five districts. In the Senate primaries, a big money advantage generally, but not in every case, carried the day. One notable exception was in the 31st District of western Missouri, where incumbent state Sen. Rick Brattin of […]

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson wasn’t on the ballot Tuesday.  But he was still one of the biggest winners of the night.  Watching from the sidelines as election results poured in — barred from running again because of term limits — Parson’s legacy was before voters in the form of the three men he appointed to […]

I’ve always thought that true political talent is rooted in dexterity: the ability to appeal to a wide variety of constituencies without significant internal contradictions. Every politician starts with his or her base. Sometimes that base is ideological. Other times it is, racial, geographic or generational. Candidates with dexterity are not only able to expand […]

Dave Wasinger secured the Republican nomination for Missouri’s lieutenant governor on Tuesday, emerging out of a crowded primary where candidates spent millions seeking the office.  With all precincts reporting, Wasinger led state Sen. Lincoln Hough of Springfield by just under 7,500 votes. Wasinger is an attorney from St. Louis who has not previously held elected […]

Missourians on Tuesday voted to require Kansas City to spend more of its municipal budget on policing, reinstating a policy that had been overturned by the state supreme court.  The race was called by the Associated Press at 11:30 p.m., with the amendment winning 51% to 48%. That means the Missouri Constitution will be amended […]

Missouri voters on Tuesday rejected an attempt by lawmakers to exempt child care facilities from paying property taxes, an incentive supporters hoped would help with the state’s day care shortage. When the Associated Press called the race at 10:30 p.m., more than 54% of Missourians had voted against amending the Missouri Constitution to offer the […]

State Sen. Denny Hoskins emerged from an eight-way primary Tuesday to capture the Republican nomination for Missouri Secretary of State.  He was declared the winner by the Associated Press at 10:15 p.m., holding 24% of the vote.  Hoskins served in the Army National Guard before becoming a certified public accountant. He has represented Warrensburg in […]

Former state Sen. Bob Onder is the Republican nominee in Missouri’s 3rd Congressional District, defeating another former state lawmaker to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer. The Associated Press called the race at 10:15 p.m., with Onder leading former state Sen. Kurt Schaefer 45% to 39%.  Onder is a physician who ran for Congress and […]

Missouri Republicans ratified Gov. Mike Parson’s choice of successor Tuesday by nominating Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, rejecting the scion of a veteran political family and the disruptive tactics of the GOP’s most vocal faction. Kehoe trailed Ashcroft in most polls until this summer, when the $16 million campaign warchest he amassed in his campaign fund […]

St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell defeated U.S. Rep. Cori Bush in the Democratic primary for the 1st District Congressional seat on Tuesday, capping a showdown between the highest profile political figures to emerge from the Ferguson uprising 10 years ago.  The Associated Press called the at 10 p.m. with Bell holding 51% of the […]

SPRINGFIELD — Southwest Missouri native and House Democratic Leader Crystal Quade won her party’s nomination for governor Tuesday in a primary race she said shows the power of grassroots campaigning. Quade, who has represented Springfield in the Missouri House for eight years, defeated Mike Hamra, a businessman also from Springfield. She’ll face Lt. Gov. Mike […]

State Treasurer Vivek Malek defeated multiple challengers Tuesday to hold on to his party’s nomination to keep his job this fall.  The Associated Press called the race for Malek at 9 p.m. He will face Democrat Mark Osmack and Libertarian John A. Hartwig Jr. in November.   “I want to thank my family and everyone who […]

COLUMBIA — Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey survived a tough primary challenge from a member of former president Donald Trump’s legal team on Tuesday to win the GOP nomination for a full term in office.  His opponent, Will Scharf, conceded the race shortly before 8:30 p.m. with Bailey leading 62% to 37%. Bailey soon addressed […]

Missouri’s education department hopes to resolve a backlog of payments to daycares across the state in the next two months, agency staff told the State Board of Education on Tuesday. The department previously predicted the backlog — which has left many daycares on the brink of closure — would be overcome by the end of […]