John Voss wins contested District 147 race

The story is updated to show the correct Election Night vote total for Charleen (Charlie) Biester.

John Voss, former Ward 1 Cape Girardeau city councilman, has won the three-way GOP primary race for state House District 147, according to unofficial results from the office of Cape Girardeau Council Clerk Kara Clark Summers.

John Voss won the Republican primary for the District 147 race Tuesday. B Magazine file

Voss, who served in City Council from 2006 to 2014 during the administrations of former mayors Jay Knudtson and Harry Rediger, defeated opponents Elaine Edgar, a Realtor, and Nate Thomas, current Ward 3 Cape Girardeau city councilman.

Unofficial results

• Voss: 1,616 (40.04%)
• Edgar 1,236 (30.62%)
• Thomas 1,184 (29.34%)

"I am so grateful for the trust and confidence the voters have put in me. I'd like to thank the many people and businesses who've supported and helped me," Voss said after all the votes were counted. "These results validate our community wants a leader who will bring us together and lift everyone up."

John Voss won Tuesday's Republican primary for the District 147 statee house seat.B Magazine file

Voss raised $31,793.94 in victory, finishing third in fundraising behind Edgar and Thomas, according to financial disclosure documents from the Missouri Ethics Commission.

Voss, who said he was proud to have run what he called a "clean" campaign, was the only candidate in the race who did not take political action committee (PAC) money.

District 147, which comprises nearly all of the City of Cape Girardeau, has been without a representative in the General Assembly since the December resignation of Republican Wayne Wallingford -- now the director of the state Department of Revenue.

Voss lost to Wallingford in the August 2020 GOP primary for the same District 147 seat 52% to 48%

The nominee said he thought the race two years ago may have made him the most familiar candidate to district voters.

"I think the race (in 2020) provided me the name recognition as well as the continuity of my strong conservative platform," Voss said.

Voss, a retired Procter & Gamble engineer, acknowledged some difficult moments with his opponents during the primary.

"The way each candidate ran their campaigns helped define their character and I believe that people aspire to want to be led in a positive direction," Voss said.

Voss will face Democrat Andy Leighton and Libertarian Greg Tlapek in the Nov. 8 general election.

Leighton and Tlapek were both unopposed in their respective party primaries.

John Voss, a retired Procter & Gamble engineer and former Cape Girardeau city councilman, speaks at a July 25 candidate forum at Drury Plaza Hotel and Conference Center in Cape Girardeau. Voss was Tuesday's winner in the Republican state House 147 primary election.Jeff Long

Summers said the county's verification board, a panel made up of an equal number of Republicans and Democrats, will meet in a few days to certify and finalize Tuesday's results.

Of note

In the GOP race for county circuit clerk, incumbent Charleen "Charlie" Biester was upset by challenger Ashley Schuessler, 3,684 to 3,515. Daniel Leimbach ran third with 1,941 votes.