Missouri's primary election is August 4. Voters will decide on candidates for all 163 Missouri House of Representatives districts and six Missouri Senate districts seats. The winning candidates will be on the ballot for the general election on November 3.
This year's primary and general elections will also decide who will fill the four House districts that have been vacant since the 2025 legislative session.
District 95 in the southern part of St. Louis County became vacant after Rep. Michael O'Donnell resigned in January 2025 to serve as the commissioner of securities for Missouri.
In District 160, which represents Newton county, Rep. Ben Baker left in May 2025 to become Missouri's Director of Rural Development.
Two House seats became vacant in August 2025.
Rep. Donnie Brown left his seat in the 149th District to become Southeast District Engineer for the Missouri Department of Transportation. The 149th District represents New Madrid, Mississippi and Pemiscot Counties.
Then, on August 28, 2025, 114th District Representative Ken Waller passed away at age 63. His District represents parts of Jefferson County.
In the months after the four House district seats became vacant, District 160 constituents asked for adequate representation and questioned when Gov. Mike Kehoe would call a writ of election. The Missouri Constitution requires the governor to issue an election within 30 days of a vacancy.
In an email to KRPS in August 2025, the governor's communications director, Gabby Picard, said there was no update on the special election for the House seats. The governor did 'signal support' for holding the special election on April 7, but no official writ of election was called.
Now, as the primary election approaches, the candidates for House District 160 have expressed their dissent with how the governor handled the decision not to fill the vacant districts.
The candidates for House District 160
Three Republican candidates are running for District 160 — Jonathan Russell, Chris Wright and Cheryle Perkins.
Jonathan Russell's campaign website describes him as a 'conservative businessman, realtor and longtime community leader.'
U.S Representative for the 7th Congressional District, Eric Burlison, endorsed Russell.
In an interview with KRPS, Russell said he is a third-generation business owner. He said, 'Small business owners are the backbone of our community, our country.'
"I have seen over the years just the weight of how the government comes down on us, not just with taxes, but also with regulations," Russell said.
Russell was 'certainly not happy' about Gov. Kehoe's decision not to call a special election for District 160's vacancy, but he respected it.
Candidate Chris Wright is also a small business owner. According to his campaign website, he's a military veteran, a former law enforcement officer, and a lifelong southwest Missouri resident.
In an interview with KRPS, Wright said one of his main campaign goals is 'fighting back against utility companies.' His statement refers to the Missouri Public Service Commission's ongoing investigation into Liberty Utilities' billing and customer service issues.
"I don't know yet how I'm going to fight against the utility companies, but something's got to give," Wright said.
His other campaign goals include Second Amendment protections and property tax reforms.
Wright is disappointed that the governor didn't call a special election. He doesn't like that the District didn't have a representative to cast votes.
Cheryle Perkins has been with the Newton County Assessor's office for 23 years. Her campaign website says she will 'ensure a fair and just taxing policy.' Another focus of her campaign is mental health.
Angela Thomas is the only Democratic candidate on the primary ballot for District 160 House seat.
Thomas is a retired cosmetologist and the Central Committee Chair of the Newton County Democratic Party. This is Thomas' third time running for the House seat.
In an interview with KRPS, she said she advocated for adequate representation once the seat was vacant, which encouraged her to run for the office again.
“I did get a little worked up once the seat was emptied and I could not get the governor to respond by holding the special election to fill that position," said Thomas.
She believes politics is more than name-calling.
"I'm hoping to be able to represent the people of my community in things such as affordable health care, fully funded education, infrastructure,” said Thomas.
To find out more about polling places, voting and candidate information, visit the Missouri Secretary of State's website.
