Archive for December 2024

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking podcast, state Rep. Kevin Windham talks about his decision to leave the Missouri House to take a job at Washington University as assistant director for community engagement.

He said salary considerations played a role, adding that he’s made roughly the same amount of money since he graduated from college.

The St. Louis County Democrat represents Missouri’s 74th District, which takes in municipalities such as Pagedale, Uplands Park, Normandy, Vinita Park, Hillsdale and Velda Village Hills. He will be leaving office in January.

Here’s what else Windham had to say on the program:

• He talked about some of his key successes as a member of the House, including helping to increase funding for Lincoln University in Jefferson City. Windham said the historically Black school had been underfunded for years.
• Why House Democrats were able to succeed in the budgetary process — and how he was disappointed that the speaker had so much power to control the flow of legislation.
• With St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell set to become Missouri’s 1st Congressional District representative in January, Windham talked about the political future of the district that includes all of St. Louis and some of St. Louis County.

He was first elected to the House in 2018 at age 25, making him the youngest Black man elected to the legislature.

Prior to serving in the legislature, Windham was a staffer in both the Missouri and U.S. senates. He is a graduate of Southeast Missouri University and recently received a master’s degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Rep.-elect Marla Smith will succeed Windham in early January.

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking podcast, outgoing St. Louis County Councilwoman Kelli Dunaway reflects on her time on the legislative body.

She said she is most proud of her legacy around environmental issues, including boosting the availability of electric vehicle chargers and making it easier for people to have native plant gardens in their yards.

Dunaway won her first election in August 2019 to replace fellow Democrat Sam Page when he became St. Louis County executive. Her victory helped secure a Democratic majority on the council.

But she said she wasn’t sure politics was for her even before running for a full term in 2020.

“If I could just do policy and execute policy, that would be amazing,” she said. “But the politics part, you have enemies that you don’t even know attacking you, and you don’t even really understand why.”

Here’s what else Dunaway talked about on the show:

• She admitted that her inability to forgive fellow Democrats Shalonda Webb of Florissant and Rita Days of north county for voting against mask mandates and other public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic probably cost her relationships that could have helped her get legislation passed. 
• Dunaway is “highly skeptical” of the ability of the St. Louis region to work together to improve its future. “It’s us versus them, and I think until those bridges get repaired, until we want to work together to solve regional problems together, I think that’s going to be what continues to get in the way of our growth and expansion,” she said.
• She is most looking forward to having her Tuesday nights free to take advantage of deals at Marcus Theatres.

Dunaway runs her own firm training and coaching lawyers. She earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and went to law school at UCLA.

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, state Rep.-elect Colin Wellenkamp speaks with St. Louis Public Radio about his expectations for the 2025 legislative session, including pushing for a boost in teacher pay.

Wellenkamp is a Republican who was elected to represent Missouri’s 105th House District, which takes in most of the city of St. Charles. He will take office in early January.

Here’s what Wellenkamp talked about on the show:

• How he prevailed in the 105th House District, one of the most evenly divided districts in terms of partisan affiliation in the state. He said voters liked that he emphasized how he would go to Jefferson City to solve problems instead of trying to obstruct priorities.
• While he expects lawmakers will try to place something on repealing a constitutional amendment legalizing abortion, Wellenkamp said the result of the November election shows that Missourians don’t want strict bans on the procedure.
• How he agrees with Gov.-elect Mike Kehoe’s posture of “being at the table” with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals for discussions around new stadiums. That could be a major issue in 2025, since Kansas is trying to lure the teams over the border.

Wellenkamp is an environmental lawyer who serves as the executive director of the Mississippi River Cities and Town Initiative. That organization advocates for towns and cities along the Mississippi River, including St. Louis.

After Republican state Rep. Adam Schwadron decided to run for secretary of state, Wellenkamp ran to succeed him. He ended up beating Democrat Ron Odenthal with about 53% of the vote — a larger margin of victory than in Schwadron’s 2022 win.

Missouri state Rep.-elect Elizabeth Fuchs said she decided to run for office after lawmakers passed a law in 2023 that barred transgender minors from accessing gender-affirming health care.

The St. Louis Democrat, whose 80th District includes Tower Grove South, attended a protest on the lawn of the Missouri Capitol against that legislation and saw the representatives who were there in support of transgender rights. She worried that many were term limited and wanted to fill that void.

Fuchs said she plans to provide “really loud and unapologetic queer leadership” in the statehouse.

Fuchs, who is a social worker, has worked for several LGBTQ advocacy organizations, including PROMO and the Metro Trans Umbrella Group.

She said being a part of the LGBTQ community and an ally to transgender people compels her to speak up.

“I’ve been in that building, working for the last 10 years. I’m familiar with the games, with the attacks, and I felt like it was my time and part of my calling,” Fuchs said.

Fuchs was the latest guest on the Politically Speaking podcast. Here are some of the other topics she spoke about on the show:

• How Democrats could still make a difference in the House, despite still being a super minority.
• Gov.-elect Mike Kehoe’s desire to place the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department under an appointed board instead of local control.
• Possible Republican efforts against a newly passed Missouri constitutional amendment that overrides the state’s abortion ban.

Fuchs is succeeding Peter Merideth, who was unable to run again due to term limits.