While elections around the country are still being decided, Missouri’s issues and candidates are mostly tied up. Former St. Louis Post-Dispatch political reporter Jo Mannies joined KMOX for a recap.
The race for St. Louis County Executive wasn’t certain, though incumbent Democrat Sam Page eventually came out on top, beating Republican opponent Mark Mantovani. Mannies said there was some debate over how North County would vote.
“He’s had strained relations with the African American members of this St. Louis County Council for a while,” Mannies said. “And I think there were some who wondered whether or not North St. Louis County voters might actually as a bloc, maybe go more from Mantovani. But that turned out not to be the case, or at least not by enough.”
While Eric Schmitt beat Trudy Busch Valentine in the race for U.S. Senate, confirming Missouri’s status as a red state for at least a while, Mannies said there were some bright spots for Democrats.
“Even though Schmitt's from St. Louis County, he didn't carry St. Louis, so he didn't carry his home turf,” she said. “And I think it does show a path forward, why while Schmitt won handily, he didn't win by the 18 or 19 points that some Republicans were telling me we were going to see.”
Mannies also pointed out that with Megan Green’s win for President of the Board of Aldermen, the city for the first time has women in all three of its top offices — the mayor, the comptroller, and the aldermanic president.
“A lot depends, always, on the relationships between those three people. Because the mayor doesn't have veto power over many things, he or she needs another vote,” Mannies said. “And so I think this is interesting, because Mayor Jones now has two allies, at least part of the time, and obviously, since she backed Green, she and Green are going to be close at least preliminarily in politics.”
As for the legalization of recreational marijuana, Mannies said at one point in the night she thought the amendment might not pass, especially since many influential groups, both democrats and republicans, had come out against it.
“There were so many other things that don't have so much to do with recreational marijuana directly that were hidden in the bill, or that they felt were hidden in the bill and not pointed out,” she said. “So in some ways, I thought it was headed for defeat. And, and it did something similar last in several other states yesterday. But it did win in Missouri, which tells you the strength of the marijuana lobby in the state.”
Hear more election analysis from Jo Mannies on KMOX:
Copyright 2022 KMOX (Audacy). All Rights Reserved.
Follow KMOX | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Listen on the free Audacy app.
Tell your smart speaker to play K M O X.