INCUMBENTS WIN 160TH, 161ST RACES FOR HOUSE

Two Republican state representatives from the area retained seats in the Missouri House.

Rep. Peter Myers, R-Sikeston, defeated his opponent by a 20-percent margin, and Rep. Lanie G. Black III, R-Charleston, defeated his opponent bynearly 15-percent.

Myers received 7,481 votes; his opponent, first-time candidate Fran Robison of Sikeston, received 4,955 votes.

"I think it's a tribute to a lot of hard-working volunteers," Myers said. "They really worked hard and it really made a difference."

Robison, 61, a schoolteacher admitted she campaigned on a shoe string budget. She was happy for Myers but added that she has no aspirations to run for public office again.

In the 161st race, Black, 53, defeated New Madrid restaurateur Van Harry Sharp, 36.

Black, who kept tabs on the election results from a friend's home in East Prairie, said he thinks he won the election by maintaining ties to the constituents who elected him the first time around.

"I just think I worked really hard my first two years," Black said Tuesday night. "To go back to the community that elected me and try to build those relationships with those people, I think those friendships and relationships sustained me."