Election results in Cape Girardeau County and surrounding counties did not mirror the statewide outcome Tuesday on some of Missouri’s ballot issues. A measure to gradually increase the minimum wage to $12 an hour won voter approval statewide by a 62 percent to 38 percent margin. But voters in Cape Girardeau, Bollinger and Perry counties rejected the issue, final vote totals show...

Republican Josh Hawley handily defeated two-term, Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill in Missouri's U.S. Senate race Tuesday. His victory helped the GOP maintain control of the Senate. Republicans were able to expand their narrow Senate majority in the midterm elections even as Democrats took control of the House for the first time in eight years...

A ballot measure that would have raised Missouri's fuel tax to improve transportation and fund the state highway patrol appeared headed for defeat Tuesday night, With 64 percent of precincts reporting, Proposition D, the fuel tax measure, was losing by a margin of 55 to 45 percent out of more than 1.5 million votes cast, according to the Missouri Secretary of State's Office...

Republican challengers won big in Scott County Tuesday, ousting Democratic incumbents in all four contested races. In the race for presiding commissioner, Jim Glueck unseated Jamie Burger, while Amanda Oesch beat out four-time incumbent Paul Boyd to become Scott County prosecuting attorney. Scott County assistant prosecutor Zac Horack defeated Scott Horman to become associate circuit judge, and Joe Bill Davis beat Glenda Enderle to become treasurer...

Strong voter turnout made for busy days at polling places in Southeast Missouri. For Cape Girardeau County, unofficial results indicated nearly 61 percent voter turnout, with all precincts reporting Tuesday night. Also in Cape Girardeau County, absentee ballots brought in 2,381 voters, according to unofficial results...

Missouri House Representative election victors Tuesday included incumbents Rick Francis and Kathy Swan, and newcomer Barry Hovis. District 146 Republican Barry Hovis replaced term-limited state Rep. Donna Lichtenegger, R-Jackson, with 15,264 votes — nearly 82 percent. Gayla Dace received 3,373 votes...

President Donald Trump rallied thousands of cheering supporters Monday night in Cape Girardeau, offering closing arguments for the Republican Party before today's crucial midterm elections to decide the balance of power in Congress. More than 7,000 people, many of them standing, crammed into the Show Me Center for Trump's "Make America Great Again" rally...

"I think it's exciting. This is my second time to see President Trump. My husband came with me today, and he wanted to make sure that even though we had the VIP pass, he wanted to make sure that he was sitting close enough to get a good view." Chris Dinkins, Iron County, Missouri...

Nationally syndicated radio talk show host and Cape Girardeau native Rush Limbaugh introduced President Donald Trump at Monday night's rally at the Show Me Center. Limbaugh took the stage at 9:10 p.m., and thanked the crowd. "It's the night of a lifetime. It's electric in here, folks," Limbaugh said...

A fiercely contested U.S. Senate race tops the statewide ballot in Missouri as voters prepare to go to the polls Tuesday. Polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill is challenged by Republican Attorney General Josh Hawley. Polls suggest the race is a tossup...

Those attending President Donald Trump’s rally Monday night will not be able to park in the Show Me Center lot or adjacent lots around the facility, an official with Southeast Missouri State University said Friday. The Secret Service has imposed the parking restrictions, university spokeswoman Ann Hayes said Friday...

Area election officials expect higher voter turnout for this midterm election than the one four years ago, spurred in part by a hotly contested U.S. Senate race. A crowded ballot, including seven constitutional amendments and propositions, will greet voters who go to the polls Tuesday...

U.S. Rep. Jason Smith believes the economy has improved in Southeast Missouri under President Donald Trump’s administration. His Democratic opponent, Kathy Ellis, strongly disagrees. Smith, a Republican from Salem, Missouri, and a staunch supporter of Trump, is seeking re-election to another two-year term...

President Donald Trump will visit Cape Girardeau on Monday, Nov. 5, as he seeks to rally GOP supporters on the eve of crucial midterm elections. The rally will be at 9 p.m. at the Show Me Center. Doors will open at 6 p.m. As with other rallies, tickets will be available from the Trump campaign at www.donaldjtrump.com/rallies...

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- As the sun rose Saturday, the line of cars waiting to get into Southern Illinois Airport was already stretching deep on Airport Road -- all anxiously awaiting one hour of stumping from President Donald Trump. Trump announced last week a visit to drum up support for U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, who is competing for re-election in a tight race for Illinois' 12th Congressional seat...

Missouri’s minimum wage would grow to $12 an hour by 2023 if voters approve a measure on the November ballot. Proposition B would increase the minimum wage by 85 cents per hour each year for the next five years, starting Jan. 1. The minimum wage now stands at $7.85 an hour...

Both Scott County Prosecuting Attorney Paul Boyd and Republican challenger Amanda Oesch have proposed changes to the county’s criminal-justice system. Oesch said she wants to provide “more effective and efficient prosecution.” Boyd wants the county to implement a “pre-trial diversion” program that would allow minor and non-violent offenders to remain at home under an ankle-monitoring system...

Scott County Associate Circuit Judge Scott Horman faces an election challenge from assistant prosecutor Zac Horack who bills himself as the “law and order candidate.” But Horman, who has served as Division 5 associate circuit judge since 2007, said he has far more experience than his opponent...

For the second time in two years, Republican state Rep. Rick Francis faces an election challenge from Democrat Ronald Pember of Fredericktown, Missouri. But Pember, who lost in a three-way race with Francis and Constitution Party candidate Victoria “Tori” Proffer two years ago, has been in poor health and has not actively campaigned this fall...

Perry County suffers from a shortage of housing, according to presiding commissioner candidates Mike Sauer and Mark Gremaud. Both candidates said, if elected, they would push for more affordable housing. Sauer, a Republican who resides in Perry County, and Gremaud, a Democrat from Perryville, Missouri, outlined their views in emailed responses to a candidates’ questionnaire from the Southeast Missourian...

Cape Girardeau County collector candidates Barbara Gholson and Carrie Michelle Robert want to upgrade the tax-collecting office. Both women said they want to make greater use of technology if elected to the $78,000-a-year job. Republican candidate Gholson, a deputy collector for the county, said, if elected, she would work with state government “to get our tax files online so that the license bureaus would be able to find paid tax receipts or citizens of the county could renew their licenses online.” ...

Missouri voters will have three opportunities to approve medical marijuana on the Nov. 6 ballot. Voters can choose from two constitutional amendments and a statutory measure seeking to make Missouri the 31st state to allow medical marijuana. Adding to the ballot confusion, proponents predict all three measures will pass, possibly putting the outcome in the hands of the Missouri Supreme Court...

Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe will speak at a Republican “Get Out the Vote” picnic and rally Saturday in Cape Girardeau. The event, hosted by the Cape Girardeau County Republican Central Committee, will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cape County Park South, Pavilion 20, according to a news release...

Gov. Mike Parson urged area civic and local government leaders Tuesday to push for passage of Proposition D, the fuel-tax-increase measure on the November ballot. He told the audience at the Drury Plaza Hotel Conference Center in Cape Girardeau improving the state’s roads and bridges and workforce development are vital to moving Missouri forward. He said they are the two major focuses of his administration...

Republican state Rep. Kathy Swan and Democratic challenger Renita Green disagree on everything from how to draw legislative districts to medical marijuana. Swan of Cape Girardeau, who was first elected to the District 147 House seat in 2012, is seeking her fourth, two-year term in the Nov. 6 election...

The two candidates for the Missouri state representative District 146 seat have contrasting views on the “Clean Missouri” and medical marijuana measures on the November ballot. But Republican candidate Barry Hovis and Democratic candidate Gayla Dace support Proposition D, the gas-tax-increase measure on the ballot...

A competitive race for U.S. Senate and various ballot measures have spurred increased voter registration, Cape Girardeau County Clerk Kara Clark Summers said Tuesday. Today marks the deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 6 election. Voters have until 5 p.m. to register, Summers said...

Scott County Presiding Commissioner Jamie Burger views unfunded state and federal mandates as the county’s biggest challenge. Challenger Jim Glueck wants to make county government “more accessible” to the public. But while they don’t run the Scott County Sheriff’s Department, the two candidates are being drawn into a legal battle involving Sheriff Wes Drury. ...

The Cape Girardeau and Jackson chambers of commerce have endorsed Proposition D, the gas-tax-increase issue on the November statewide ballot, insisting it would be an economic benefit. Brian Gerau, executive director of the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce, said in a news release Friday “transportation infrastructure is key to any area’s economic growth and with Missouri having one of the lowest fuel taxes in the nation along with one of the largest highway networks, Proposition D passage is vital for sustainability.” ...

General admission tickets to President Donald Trump’s rally Thursday at the Show Me Center are being handled exclusively by the Trump campaign, a local congressman’s office said Friday. Tickets cannot be obtained from the Show Me Center box office, Southeast Missouri State University spokeswoman Ann Hayes said...

Cape Girardeau County Republican Party’s central committee has nominated interim Sheriff Ruth Ann Dickerson as its candidate for a November special election to fill out the unexpired term of sheriff. Dickerson took over as Cape Girardeau County sheriff Aug. 13, becoming the first woman to serve in that position in the 218-year history of the department...