Politically Speaking

Joan VonDras believes that if Democrats are going to beat Congresswoman Ann Wagner in the fall, they’ll have to stretch past their comfort zone. VonDras, a former educator at the Clayton and Parkway School districts, and Fred Wellman are the major contenders in the 2nd Congressional District Democratic primary. VonDras has been holding town halls throughout the 2nd District, which includes a number of GOP-leaning areas like Jefferson, Franklin and Gasconade counties. She said the winner of the Aug. 4 primary Democratic primary can’t win in November without appealing to Republicans and independents. “There are plenty of people that want to put country above party, and those are the people we need to tap into,” VonDras said during an appearance on the “Politically Speaking” podcast.

With less than two weeks to go before voters in St. Louis and St. Louis County decide their nationally-watched race, Congressman Wesley Bell and Cori Bush clashed in an intense joint appearance Friday. The two Democrats got into tense exchanges about their campaign finance donations and spending during an appearance on “The Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air.”

Democrat David Bryant is one of two candidates seeking the party’s nomination for St. Louis County prosecuting attorney. The winner will face a Libertarian candidate in November.

The Democrat is one of two candidates seeking the party’s nomination for St. Louis County prosecuting attorney. The winner will face a frequent Libertarian candidate in November.

Tim Whitney had always wanted to be in law enforcement. And he achieved his goal by working his way up to being the second-in-command at the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department. But after a number of years of overseeing day-to-day operations for the agency, Whitney is making the transition to politics by running for Jefferson County executive — something he said is a continuation of his public service and his love for his home county. “I love Jefferson County,” Whitney said on St. Louis Public Radio’s “Politically Speaking.” “As I say that, I can hear listeners gasping or rolling their eyes because that's a political answer. As somebody who has been in law enforcement my whole life… When I said those words, they were taken at face value. The day you become a politician, there's a sense of skepticism that applies to that. And there should be because of the things politicians before have done.” Whitney is running against John Stockton in the GOP primary on Aug. 4. The winner will be the heavy favorite to succeed Jefferson County Executive Dennis Gannon, who is not running for re-election.

The St. Louis County Democrat is one of two candidates seeking his party’s nomination to replace Jake Zimmerman, who hopes to be the next St. Louis County executive.

John Stockton has never run for political office before. But when incumbent Jefferson County Executive Dennis Gannon decided not to run for another term, he thought the time had come in his life to enter the political arena. Stockton, who operates several businesses in Jefferson County, said his motivation for jumping into the GOP primary is about giving back to the place that he’s called home for almost all of his life. “There comes a point in time where it's not about titles or positions anymore,” Stockton said. “It's about ultimately giving back to the county that's given me everything.” Stockton is running in the Aug. 4 Republican primary against Tim Whitney, who is the undersheriff for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department. Stockton said that he’s knocked on over 5,000 doors and is hearing a desire for the county government to be more service oriented.

The St. Ann Democrat is one of two candidates seeking his party’s nomination to replace Jake Zimmerman, who hopes to be the next St. Louis County executive.

The Democrat from Florissant is one of three seeking the party’s nomination to replace Sam Page. The winner of the August primary will face Republican and Green party candidates in November.

The Democrat from Olivette is one of three seeking the party’s nomination to replace Sam Page. The winner of the August primary will face Republican and Green party candidates in November.

The Democrat from University City is one of three seeking the party’s nomination to replace Sam Page as County Executive. The winner of the August primary will face Republican County Councilman Dennis Hancock, R-Fenton, in November.

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, we explore three major contests up on the Aug. 4 ballot: The Republican primary for St. Charles County Executive; a ballot item over whether some constitutional amendments should be more difficult to pass; and the reauthorization of a critical sales tax funding Missouri State Parks.

Gina Mitten returns to Politically Speaking to discuss her next goal in Missouri politics: Becoming the next state senator for Missouri's 4th District. Mitten joins St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Kellogg and Jason Rosenbaum to talk about why she's the best Democrat for the job, what she would focus on in the Senate and her opinions on Amendments 3, 4 and 5.

Steve Butz, a St. Louis Democrat, joins St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Kellogg and Jason Rosenbaum to talk about his candidacy for Missouri's 4th Senate District. He also spoke on his vote to place the St. Louis Police Department under state control, what the state still needs to do on tornado recovery as well as his thoughts on some of the proposed constitutional amendments that Missouri voters will decide on.

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, Republican Chris Stigall talks about his campaign to succeed Congressman Sam Graves in Missouri's 6th Congressional District. Stigall's main opponent in the Aug. 4 primary is Kansas City Councilman Nathan Willett, who appeared earlier this month on the podcast.

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, STLPR's Sarah Fentem talks about the impact of Jackson County Judge Jerri Zhang's ruling on abortion access – and how November's Amendment 3 could put expanded access at risk. Children's Division director Sara Smith discusses how she's reorganizing how child abuse investigators do their jobs. And Politically Speaking Hour host Jason Rosenbaum asks a very, very important question: What makes someone a Missourian?

St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann was originally going to retire after roughly 20 years on the job. But the Republican countywide official chose to seek a sixth term in office, partly because he believes he’s the only candidate who can prevent former Sen. Bill Eigel from taking his job. “Given the people who were running, especially former Sen. Eigel, it was necessary for me to defend everything that my team has been able to accomplish over the last 20 years,” Ehlmann said on “Politically Speaking.”

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, former state Sen. Bill Eigel talks about why he's running for St. Charles County executive. Eigel is one of three major candidates in the Aug. 4 primary, which includes incumbent Steve Ehlmann and former Lake Saint Louis Mayor Jason Law.

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, former Lake Saint Louis Mayor Jason Law discusses his bid for St. Charles County Executive. Law is squaring off against incumbent County Executive Steve Ehlmann and former Sen. Bill Eigel on Aug. 4.

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, Kansas City City Councilman Nathan Willett joins the program to talk about his bid to become the GOP nominee in Missouri's 6th Congressional District. Willett is one of two major Republican contenders running to succeed Rep. Sam Graves in Congress.