Farmington state senator, city councilman vie for Tilley's House seat

FARMINGTON, Mo. -- Sen. Kevin Engler has served in the Missouri House before. Now, faced with term limits that are pushing him out, the two-term senator wants to go back and he says he has the best resume and institutional knowledge for the job.

But there's another Farmington Republican, city councilman John Robinson, who says that it's time for "less establishment" and more "grassroots guys" in Jefferson City. With no Democratic candidates on the ballot and the filing deadline past, the two men will square off in a winner-takes-all Aug. 7 GOP primary.

The candidates are hoping to replace outgoing House Speaker Steve Tilley, R-Perryville, although the new 116th House District -- redrawn in the redistricting process -- looks slightly different from Tilley's 106th. The 116th still includes portions of Perry, Ste. Genevieve and St. Francois counties, but now it includes one-third of Perryville's city limits (Tilley had half) and two-thirds of Farmington (Tilley had all of it). The rest of Perryville is in the new 145th District, where Shelley Keeney of Marble Hill is the only major-party candidate who filed.

Engler served one term in the House in 2003-2004 before jumping ship to the more powerful Senate, where he is in his eighth year representing the people who live in the 3rd District as majority floor leader. The Senate has 34 members who represent larger areas, while if elected, Engler would be one of 163 in the House.

"A lot of people think it's a step down, and it probably is in terms of power," Engler said. "But for the average person being a state rep would be an honor, so why wouldn't it be an honor for me to be one?"

John Robinson

Engler thinks his experience makes him best suited. Before joining the legislature, Engler served two terms as mayor of Farmington.

"I think I've got some knowledge to offer," he said.

No one should be able to attack his conservative record, said Engler, who sponsored bills against gay marriage and abortion while never voting for a tax increase or a government pay raise.

"That's what I'm going to run on -- my record," Engler said. "I think I've got a good one. But he's welcome to run. Nobody's entitled to these offices. ... If they want to take me out, they can take me out. I'm one of the few up there who is gainfully employed."

Robinson has served on the city council in Farmington for about a year, where he said he's proud of the things that he's stood for. As far as his voting record, it's the "no" votes that he's the most proud of.

"Anything that would expand the breadth and length of government oversight, I voted against," he said.

He voted against a tax-increment financing district, which is a public financing method used to subsidize redevelopment. He voted against historical designations that would have allowed grant applications for state funding for repairs.

"Across the board, anything that would add to the deficit or cause more local, county or state government oversight, I feel we have too much of that," Robinson said.

In Engler's most recent financial disclosure forms, he had $50,212 cash on hand, with $14,925 in contributions that filtered in during the final three months of last year.

For that campaign filing period, Tilley was Engler's largest donor, kicking in $2,400. Other contributors included two political action committees for health education and the Missouri cable industry, as well as contributions from payday loan companies, two donations from the Ameristar casino in St. Charles, Mo., and Noranda Aluminum Inc. of New Madrid, Mo.

Robinson's campaign had only $300 in cash, according to the filing, though he has spent more than $1,000 on postage, auto expenses, advertising and in phone bills.

Robinson hopes that when people hear his message as he goes door to door, it will resonate with them more strongly than a big-budget media campaign.

"If you're fed up enough and don't want to do something about it, you have no right to complain," Robinson said. "I was fed up and I wanted to do something about it."

Engler said it's up to voters.

"I still want to make my community a better place," he said. "If people want me to continue, great. If not, I'll go off into the sunset."

smoyers@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

Farmington, MO

Perryville, MO