Three area Senate seats up for grabs in 2004 election

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Due to legislative redistricting, all three of Southeast Missouri's seats in the state Senate will be up for election next year. By coincidence, none of the campaigns for those seats will feature an incumbent.

While Republican candidates have already emerged in all three districts, only one district has a Democratic entry so far. But with four months to go until candidates can file for office, plenty of time remains for Democrats to join the other races.

With Senate President Pro Tem Peter Kinder, R-Cape Girardeau, term-limited and running for lieutenant governor in 2004, his 27th District seat will be up for grabs.

House Majority Floor Leader Jason Crowell of Cape Girardeau and former state Rep. Pat Naeger of Perryville are seeking the Republican nomination.

'Some vulnerability'

Tom Neumeyer, a member of the Cape Girardeau County Democratic Committee, said the party, which offered no opposition to Kinder in 2000, will likely field a candidate next year.

"The chances would be good," Neumeyer said. "Some folks feel that with what the legislature did last year to funding for education and human services, there is some vulnerability" for Republicans.

The 27th District represents Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Madison, Mississippi, Perry and Scott counties.

State Sen. Bill Foster's surprise decision last month to forgo seeking a second term could spark new interest among Democrats in the 25th District.

The seat had been firmly in Democratic hands for years until Foster, R-Poplar Bluff, was elected in 2000. The outgoing incumbent has endorsed state Rep. Rob Mayer, R-Dexter, as his successor.

Until Foster's announcement, Mayer had been aiming for a third term in the House of Representatives but said he is ready to mount a solid run for the upper chamber.

"I've been touching base with folks throughout the district to make certain we have unity in the Republican Party," Mayer said. "Thus far the comments have been positive."

There has been little buzz about a possible Democratic hopeful, aside from speculation that former state Sen. Jerry T. Howard of Dexter, whom Foster defeated, might attempt a comeback.

For his part, Mayer doesn't expect to run unopposed.

"I'm sure they will field a candidate," Mayer said.

The 25th District covers Butler, Dunklin, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Ripley, Stoddard and Wayne counties.

Republicans currently outnumber Democrats 20-13 in the Senate. The minority party is expected to add a senator in Tuesday's special election to fill a vacant Kansas City seat.

Senate terms are staggered so half of the body's 34 seats are on the ballot every election year.

Redrawn, renumbered

While the 25th and 27th districts have always been filled during presidential election years, the area's other Senate seat -- the old 20th District -- had been decided in off-cycle years.

However, that district was redrawn and renumbered as the 3rd District in 2001 and put on the same cycle as the others. The district has been without local representation since January, as the old 3rd District was based in St. Louis, where voters elected its current senator.

Although the new district leans Democratic, Republicans see it as a strong possibility for a pickup.

Barring additional entries, that race is shaping up as a battle between two St. Francois County state representatives -- Democrat Dan Ward of Bonne Terre and Republican Kevin Engler of Farmington.

The district includes Carter, Iron, Reynolds, Ste. Genevieve, St. Francois and Washington counties, plus the southern half of Jefferson County.

mpowers@semissourian.com

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