KISER PLANS STRATEGY IN 8TH DISTRICT

PIEDMONT - Wayne County Prosecuting Attorney Jon Kiser had been following efforts by 8th congressional Democratic leaders to find a viable challenger to Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson. Like many party leaders, Kiser felt the time might be right to unseat the six-term incumbent.

Kiser had anticipated that his state representative, Joe Driskill, would get into the race. But late Monday afternoon, Driskill decided against making a run for Congress.

After a lot of thought in a short period of time, and some strong encouragement from people in his area, Kiser left his office shortly before noon on Tuesday and drove to Jefferson City to file for Congress. He became the fifth of six Democrats to file about one hour before the deadline.

"The Democratic Party was looking for viable candidates and none were forthcoming in my estimation. I looked at the Democratic field that had filed and didn't believe any of them could beat Emerson, so I drove to Jefferson City and filed," explained Kiser.

With Driskill ruling out a race, Kiser said, "I thought someone needed to fill the void."

Kiser believes he has a lot to offer voters of the 8th district, in particular the views of an outsider - a fresh face committed to change.

"I'm pretty far from being a Washington insider. Wayne County is a long way away from Washington," said Kiser. "This is largely a rural congressional district and I think I can represent the common man because I am one of them.

"I think there is a large amount of discontent among the electorate and for Congress as a whole. I think incumbents are vulnerable now. I'm not running as a lark - I'm running to win."

Kiser said a lot of things weighed in his decision to file. He admits the revelation that Emerson had six bad checks on the House bank might hurt the incumbent a little, but said, "I won't make it a major campaign issue."

Kiser added, "I'm pretty much a complete outsider. I do believe Congressman Emerson is a Washington beltway insider. He's had 12 years to pursue whatever programs he's wanted to pursue. I think he's had enough time; it's time for change."

Over the next few weeks, the 32-year-old candidate plans to issue some position papers, which he feels will show that he has different ideas from Emerson on several issues.

Kiser is a life-long resident of Piedmont and was first elected prosecutor in 1986. He was re-elected two years ago.

Kiser also has a civil law practice in Piedmont. His wife Pam is a medical technologist at the Piedmont Family Clinic.

For two years, Kiser attended Southeast Missouri State University before transferring to the University of Missouri-Columbia where he received a B.S. in education. He graduated from the Mizzou law school in 1985.

Although he has never had a contested election for public office, Kiser is optimistic he can capture the Democratic nomination and then mount a serious challenge to Emerson in November.

He readily admits that it may be after the primary before many contributors and potential supporters start taking his candidacy seriously. Kiser also understands that by entering the race late, he has a lot of organizational work to do.

"We had to hit the floor running," said Kiser. "I'd anticipate fundraising will be a little slow at first, but hopefully after the primary the purse strings will loosen up a little bit. I don't have any misconceptions that I will be able to outspend an incumbent congressman, but that isn't necessary. If I can raise enough to get my message out, I'll be happy with that."

He added, "We're in relatively uncharted territory. I hope to talk with several politicians in the Bootheel area soon and am looking to them for guidance on the way the campaign should be run. We're largely novices in the field of politics, but I don't necessarily see that as a detriment this year.

"A lot of people are tired of business as usual and might like to see a fresh approach to the whole thing."

Over the next few weeks, Kiser said he will visit with as many party leaders and voters as possible to get his campaign on track. How fundraising goes will determine the kind of media he will be able to buy for the primary, Kiser noted.

"I have no misconceptions about this; I'm not some golden boy," said Kiser. "But I do think I can win the primary and think that's when I can pick up a lot of support.

"There are a few major areas where I'll differ with the congressman. My position on all issues should be fairly straight forward."

Other Democratic candidates are Thad Bullock of Cape Girardeau; Johnny Dover of Bell City; Shannon Russell of Gideon; James "Jay" Thompson of Bourbon; and Dean Burk of DeSoto.

During the primary campaign, Kiser said he would emphasize to voters that of the Democrats running, "I think I have the best chance to beat Emerson."