Pratt, Tilley picked for Mo. House leadership positions

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- House Republicans have picked lawmakers from suburban Kansas City and rural eastern Missouri to take over a couple of top leadership positions.

Rep. Bryan Pratt, R-Blue Springs, was nominated Tuesday night by fellow Republicans to become the next House speaker pro tem, the second-ranking position behind House Speaker Rod Jetton, R-Marble Hill.

If elected as expected Wednesday by the full chamber, Pratt will replace Speaker Pro Tem Carl Bearden, R-St. Charles, who resigned to take a job with a lobbying, fundraising and public relations firm.

Republicans also elected Rep. Steven Tilley, R-Perryville, to succeed House Majority Floor Leader Tom Dempsey, R-St. Charles, who won election last week to the state Senate. Tilley's position does not require a vote of the entire House.

House Republicans hold a 90-70 advantage over Democrats, with three vacancies.

The Republican caucus met in a closed session to choose their new leaders. They plan to do so again Wednesday to pick a speaker-designee who -- assuming Republicans maintain their majority in the 2008 elections and that particular politician also wins re-election -- would take over the chamber's top position in January 2009.

The two speaker candidates are Reps. Ron Richard, R-Joplin, and Allen Icet, R-Wildwood.

This apparently is the first time the majority party in the House has chosen its speaker so far in advance. Jetton said it should allow the person to undergo a year of training with him and hopefully create a smoother transition.

Several other states, including neighboring Arkansas and Oklahoma, already use a similar speaker selection process.

"It's something that's happening more and more in states that have term limits, because the turnover is so quick and the learning curve is so steep," Jetton said.

Pratt was first elected to the House in 2002, making 2008 the final year in which he is eligible to seek re-election before bumping into the law's limit of four two-year terms in the House. Tilley was first elected to the House in 2004.

Both Pratt and Tilley said they traveled the state in recent weeks or months, visiting with colleagues in their home districts about their goals for the House.

Pratt, 34, is an attorney who said his platform consists of "less taxes, less regulation, empowering better economic development in the state" and "conservative leadership."

He defeated four other Republicans vying for the speaker pro tem nomination -- Reps. Bob Dixon of Springfield; Doug Ervin of Kearney; Scott Muschany of St. Louis; and Brian Nieves of Washington.

House Republicans had planned to gradually whittle the field down until one candidate received a majority of votes, but Pratt won the nomination on just the second ballot.

Tilley defeated Rep. Tom Self, R-Cole Camp, who has served as the assistant majority floor leader to Dempsey.

The floor leader generally decides which bills to bring up for House debate, when to do so and when to ask colleagues to cut off debate.

Tilley, 36, is an optometrist. He said he believes a good floor leader needs to listen to colleagues and be well-organized.

"I certainly believe in fair and open debate and look forward to having that on the House floor," he said.