Last week, I provided a brief overview of Missouri’s 21st state Senate District. The constituency, after the past two years’ painstaking redistricting process, now pairs Lafayette County with parts of the former 31st District, including Warrensburg, home to Republican candidate and 31st District Sen. David Pearce. Higginsville is a town of just more than 4,000 residents in south-central Lafayette, and headquarters of the campaigns of Elgene Ver Dught (Democrat) and Steven Hedrick (Libertarian).
This past Sunday, I visited Higginsville on my way back to Columbia from Liberty, a suburb of Kansas City and my childhood home. Technically, Higginsville is considered a part of the greater Kansas City metropolitan area, just about seven miles north of I-70 at the 40-mile marker headed east. On Sunday afternoon, however, it might as well have been the headquarters of Anytown, U.S.A.
This sign welcomes visitors to Higginsville from Rte. 13, which runs north from Interstate 70.
Main Street, where Ver Dught’s (a legal mediator) office is located just next to the offices for a Foster Grandparent Program, was quiet except for the Higginsville Lanes, a bowling alley, and a Mexican restaurant. Ample parking was available at the Lafayette County Farmers Market, and the top of a massive MFA Oil silo can be seen when looking southwest from the main strip.
Lafayette County’s seat is Lexington, but if you’re looking for good zucchini bread, Higginsville is the place to go.
Elgene Ver Dught’s office sits in downtown Higginsville. Yard signs dot laws to the north along the major thoroughfare.
Railroad tracks cross main street just before you hit the main drag coming from the south. This train car is a remnant from the Kansas City Southern Lines, still in operation after 125 years.
Ver Dught, whose yard sign appeared most frequently in Higginsville, and Hedrick have their work cut out for them, facing an incumbent state senator and running in a town that has traditionally voted Republican.
According to records from the Lafayette County Clerk, the town leans to the GOP. In 2008, Higginsville favored Republican Bill Stouffer over his Democratic challenger Joe Sadeghi by a 62 percent to 37 percent margin. The town also favored Republican presidential candidate John McCain to Democrat Barack Obama by 145 votes, or 5 percent of those who cast a ballot.
In other races, partisan support wasn’t so clear. The city favored Democratic Treasurer candidate Clint Zweifel by a narrow (37-vote) margin, and overwhelmingly elected Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon, with 59 percent of the vote.
Ver Dught and Hedrick will also contend with influential endorsements from the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and American Federation of Labor – Congress of Industrial Organizations chapter for Pearce. Pearce also received a grade of A from the National Rifle Association, while Ver Dught earned a C.
The money race, according to the Missouri Ethics Commission, indicates a predictable lopsidedness for the incumbent. Pearce’s earnings reported 30 days after the primary election totaled $120,000, likely because of the competitive primary for the Republican nomination. Ver Dught, the only Democratic candidate, had earned a little less than $3,000 as of Sept. 1.
I’m working on lining up a chat with a reporter on the ground, covering this race for a news outlet in the 21st District. Watch this space for that interview, hopefully posted next week.
Meantime, check out this video from KRCG CBS 13‘s YouTube feed of District 19 candidates Kurt Schaefer and Mary Still discussing solutions for I-70’s problems at a debate at MU on Tuesday. Neither seems interested in supporting a toll to pay for improvements.
Show Me the Races 