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Farms have been slow to use solar power because of start-up costs and other issues. But the technology appears to be catching on with more farmers in Missouri thanks to a USDA grant program.

After easily winning in a challenge for re-election on Tuesday night, St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura Jones chose to reflect on one of the unmistakable themes of the 2020 Missouri primary: Black women prevailing in bruising, and often, personal elections. For Jones, Tuesday was about “a wave of Black girl magic that’s hit Missouri.” She pointed to Democratic wins by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, Lt. Gov. nominee Alissa Canady and, of course, 1st Congressional District nominee Cori Bush. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum, Jaclyn Driscoll and Rachel Lippmann break down Tuesday's pivotal primary election.

Tuesday’s primary election in Missouri saw many incumbents hold onto their seats — and one major upset. St. Louis Public Radio correspondent Jason Rosenbaum discusses Cori Bush’s remarkable victory over incumbent U.S. Rep. Lacy Clay, as well as the passage of Missouri Amendment 2, which makes Missouri the 38th state to expand Medicaid.

We check in with Tony Simokaitis, scoreboard director for the St. Louis Cardinals. His job is to create that faux-crowd energy in an empty ballpark — if the team ever gets back on the field. Seven Cardinals players and six staff members tested positive for the coronavirus. Sports writer Derrick Goold gives us the latest on that.

In an upset, activist Cori Bush has unseated longtime Congressman Lacy Clay in Missouri's 1st Congressional District. The surprise result in yesterday's Democratic primary also ends a family political dynasty. Also, we examine how small colleges in Missouri and Illinois plan to make it through the pandemic.

Calvin Davis became very ill in late March, and was diagnosed with COVID-19 shortly after. After being admitted to the hospital on April 9, he spent 76 days there and more than 90 days away from home as he battled the coronavirus. For much of that time, he was on a ventilator. In this interview, we hear the incredible story of one family’s battle against the coronavirus and the intensive recovery process that they are still dealing with, weeks later.

Consultants who work closely with conservative billionaire Rex Sinquefield have gathered enough signatures to force a vote on the privatization of St. Louis Lambert International Airport this November. If voters say yes to the plan, the city would basically be required to lease the airport to a private company by next summer. One argument for doing that is that it could help pay down the airport’s half a billion dollar debt. St. Louis Public Radio reporter Corinne Ruff recently dug into that claim.

Author Gloria Shur Bilchik spent 18 months observing the St. Louis County Board of Elections. She discusses “Election Insiders: Behind the Scenes With the People Who Make Your Vote Count” with host Sarah Fenske.

Monument Lab recently gathered 750 crowdsourced maps of St. Louis monuments, both real and imagined. A Washington University professor of African and African American History says those maps reflect the city’s lingering divides.

This month marks 100 years since the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which granted U.S. women the right to vote. But the fight for women’s suffrage was a long one, starting many decades prior to that celebratory day in 1920. And St. Louis women were among some of the earliest suffragists around the country. In this segment, host Sarah Fenske talks with local curator Katie Moon and scholar Elizabeth Eikmann.

“Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask" author Jon Pessah discusses Yogi Berra’s remarkable life, including his early years on the Hill, his baseball career and the racial slurs he faced as an Italian in the 1940s.

Horse racing has resumed without fans at Fairmount Park. It had been delayed for months because of the pandemic. Online betting is helping to generate some revenue but is likely not enough for the track to survive.

Missouri’s Aug. 4 primary has snuck up fast during a year when the U.S. presidential election is looming large amid a global pandemic. But plenty of key local races will be decided in the heavily Democratic St. Louis region — and voters throughout the state will determine whether Missouri expands Medicaid coverage, joining the 37 other states that have opted to do so in conjunction with the Affordable Care Act. If passed, Amendment 2 (the Medicaid Expansion Initiative) would effectively expand Medicaid eligibility to include adults between the ages of 19 and 65 whose income is at or below 138 percent of the federal poverty level. As of 2020, that amounts to $17,608 for an individual and $36,156 for a household of four.

Contemporary citizen journalists can find a lot of common ground with a trailblazer who was active during the late 19th and early 20th centuries: Ida B. Wells. Motivated by false narratives and the downplaying of abuse of Black Americans of her day, Wells chronicled the stories of those impacted by lynchings and riots. Wells’ quantitative work pioneered the way for data journalism and inspired her great-granddaughter Michelle Duster to dedicate her life to countering false narratives.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner faces one of her former top assistants, Mary Pat Carl, in the Democratic primary on Tuesday. Gardner beat Carl in 2016. Both have visions for using the criminal justice system as a tool for second chances.

In “Ordinarily Extraordinary: Love and Anger, Life and Death, Hope and Inspiration,” Patrick P. Long reflects on the moments of doubt, stress and anxiety that come with a spouse’s cancer battle. In this episode, he talks with host Sarah Fenske about his memoir and how despite a devastating loss, he developed the belief that nothing in life is insurmountable.

All too often, artistic expression proves inaccessible to everyday people, a kind of luxury out of reach for those struggling to make ends meet. Katherine Dunham understood this reality when she first turned her attention to East St. Louis in the 1960s. And so does Leverne Backstrom, one of a handful of dedicated community members still carrying on the world-renowned dancer and choreographer’s legacy there today.

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department collects a lot of information on how it uses force. But it doesn’t release most of the data. Researchers say those details are crucial for understanding how officers interact with the public.

St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum teams up with Left Bank Books' Shane Mullen once again to interview author Larry Tye. Tye is the author of the new book Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy. It's the definitive biography of the Wisconsin senator who gained historical infamy for his ill-fated crusade against communism. You can buy Tye's book at Left Bank Books by going to left-bank.com — or copying and pasting this address (https://www.left-bank.com/book/9781328959720) into your browser.

Attorneys Mark Smith, Nicole Gorovsky and Dave Roland dig into the legal matters of the month, including the criminal charges filed against two personal injury attorneys and an allegation of "extortion" St. Louis County has made against a local attorney.