VIENNA — Republican voters in Maries County selected Belle Police Department Sgt. Mark Morgan as the party’s nominee for sheriff in the Nov. 5 general election during last week’s primary election.

Morgan secured 1,024 votes (41.80 percent) to finish ahead of Maries County Chief Deputy Scott John’s 733 votes (29.92 percent) and Vienna Police Department reserve Buddy Thompson’s 693 votes (28.29 percent). Morgan will face independent candidate Timothy “TJ” Halle, Jr., in the general election this fall.

On the morning of Election Day, Morgan was stationed under his campaign tent in the parking lot of St. Alexander Catholic Church, the location of the Belle precinct.

“We need to focus on getting back to the job, regardless of how the election goes, we need to figure out how to work together,” Morgan said. “Really focus back on the community, our trust and the support of the community. Negative politics is going to take some time to get over, everything that’s been said. If I win sheriff, I don’t want to wait to start working with the sheriff’s department. I want to start working with them right now. I want to fill the Community Center with Maries County deputies, Belle PD, the Vienna Police Department, and all neighboring agencies. Training together builds teamwork. The community expects us to work together.”

That evening, Morgan and several supporters had gathered on the courthouse lawn to hear the results. After hearing the final precinct, they began to celebrate with confetti poppers and a group hug. Thompson was also on the courthouse lawn for election night. He shared a post-election handshake with Morgan.

“I think I ran a fair and honest campaign,” Thompson, whose campaign for sheriff was his third unsuccessful attempt, said after it became clear Morgan had won the nomination. “We did the best we could. I had a lot of support, and I appreciate the support. I’m going to burn my signs, and that’ll be the end of it.”

Following the election, John submitted a statement to The Advocate expressing gratitude to his supporters and reflecting on his time with the sheriff’s office.

“Serving at the sheriff’s office has been one of the greatest privileges of my professional career, and I am proud of the accomplishments we have made,” he said. “We will continue serving the citizens of Maries County to the best of our ability until we transition leadership to the new sheriff after the November election.”

John also recognized the work of Sheriff Chris Heitman.

“He transitioned our sheriff’s office from an outdated, in-debt office to one of the best equipped and financially secure offices in mid-Missouri,” he said. “Best wishes and prayers for the deputies’ continued safety for years to come.”

The primary for sheriff was the only contested race at the county level. Incumbents Eastern District Commissioner Doug Drewel, a Republican, and Assessor Dana Simmons, a Democrat, are both unopposed in their bids for reelection this November. Maries County will also have a new public administrator after Democrat Amanda Sandbothe was the only candidate to run in either party’s primary.

Western District Commissioner Ed Fagre was the only candidate for his position in the primary election. However, Fagre announced his plans to retire at the end of this term after his name was locked into the ballot. He will once again appear on the November ballot though two independent candidates, Patrick Kleffner and Ryan Davis, are running to succeed him.

November’s election will see a contested race for coroner after Democrats and Republicans each had one candidate in the primary. Incumbent Coroner David Martin, a Democrat, will face Republican Tom Tramel in the general election.

Voter turnout was 41.8 percent, which was below County Clerk Rhonda Rodgers’ prediction of 53 percent though still ahead of many counties throughout the state as the three-candidate sheriff race brought local voters to the polls. Among all party ballots, 2,670 of the county’s 6,385 registered voters participated.

Two candidates competed in the Republican primary to represent Missouri’s 143rd House District, which includes Maries and Texas counties and parts of Phelps County. Incumbent Bennie Cook won the nomination with  5,200 votes (79.0 percent) across the district compared to challenger Phillip Lohmann’s 1,381 votes (21.0 percent). The election was a rematch between the two candidates, who both ran in the 2022 primary against a third candidate. Cook’s percentage rose from 71.5 percent and Lohmann’s rose from 12.9 percent. Cook will have another rematch against Democrat Bernadette Holzer, the only candidate in her party’s primary, in November.

Many statewide races featured crowded fields for both Republicans and Democrats.

At the top of the ticket, the Republican primary for governor showed it was a three-person race. Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe won the nomination with 274,840 votes (39.41 percent) followed by state Sen. Bill Eigel with 227,012 votes (32.55 percent) and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft with 162,086 votes (23.24 percent). The trio finished in the same order in Maries County with 1,235 votes (50.53 percent) for Kehoe, 762 votes (31.18 percent) for Eigel and 360 votes (14.73 percent) for Ashcroft.

Kehoe’s Democratic opponent in November will be House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, who won her party’s nomination with 189,822 votes (50.25 percent) followed by business owner Mike Hamra with 119,702 (31.69 percent) and Pastor Eric Morrison with 36,985 votes (9.79 percent). The top three were the same in Maries County with Quade receiving 80 votes (49.38 percent), Hamra receiving 40 votes (24.69 percent) and Morrison receiving 27 votes (16.67 percent).

The Libertarian nominee for governor is business owner Bill Slantz, who ran unopposed in the primary.

The closest statewide race came in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor. Attorney Dave Wasinger won the nomination with 206,875 votes (31.39 percent) followed by state Sen. Lincoln Hough with 199,423 votes (30.26 percent) and state Sen. Holly Rehder with 142,801 votes (21.66 percent). The top three were the same in Maries County were the same though the percentage separating Wasinger and Hough was even smaller. Wasinger had 687 votes (30.64 percent) to Hough’s 681 votes (30.37 percent) and Rehder’s 463 votes (20.65 percent).

Democratic voters chose state Rep. Richard Brown as their nominee for lieutenant governor. Brown received 231,970 votes (64.93 percent) to opponent Anastasia Syes’ 125,283 votes (35.07 percent). Brown led Maries County with 106 votes (70.20 percent) to Syes’ 45 votes (29.80 percent).

Libertarian nominee Ken Iverson ran unopposed in his party’s primary.

State Sen. Denny Hoskins won the Republican nominee for secretary of state with 157,116 votes (24.42 percent) followed by Greene County Clerk Shane Schoeller with 108,289 votes (16.83 percent) and Judge Mike Carter with 91,866 votes (14.28 percent). Hoskins led Maries County with 626 votes (28.73 percent) though Carter’s 328 votes (15.05 percent) put him ahead of third-place Schoeller with 313 votes (14.36 percent).

Hoskins will face Democratic nominee state Rep. Barbara Phifer in November. Phifer’s 146,284 votes (40.86 percent) put her ahead of opponents Monique Williams’ 123,270 votes (34.43 percent) and nurse Haley Jacobson’s 88,491 votes (24.72 percent). The order was the same in Maries County with Phifer’s 64 votes (42.11 percent) leading Williams’ 47 votes (30.92 percent) and Jacobson’s 41 votes (26.97 percent).

Libertarian Carl Herman Freese ran uncontested in the primary and will appear on the ballot in November.

Incumbent Treasurer Vivek Malek won the Republican nomination for his office with 273,691 votes (41.52 percent) followed by state Sen. Andrew Koenig with 135,637 votes (20.58 percent) and attorney Lori Rook with 127,807 votes (19.39 percent). The top three remained the same in Maries County with Malek receiving 898 votes (39.93 percent) to Koenig’s 508 votes (22.59 percent) and Rook’s 410 votes (18.23 percent).

Democrat Mark Osmack and Libertarian John A. Hartwig, Jr. ran unopposed in the primary and will challenge Malek in November.

Incumbent Attorney General Andrew Bailey won the Republican nomination with 413,465 votes (63.01 percent) to challenger Will Scharf’s 242,680 votes (36.99 percent). Bailey led Maries County with 1,491 votes (66.50 percent) to Scharf’s 751 votes (33.50 percent).

Democrat Elad Jonathan Gross and Libertarian Ryan L. Munro ran unopposed in the primary and will face Bailey in November.

United States Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer’s retirement left Republicans in Missouri’s 3rd Congressional District competing in a crowded primary to replace him as the party’s nominee. Former state Sen. Bob Onder won the nomination with 48,785 votes (47.38 percent) followed by former state Sen. Kurt Schaefer with 38,331 votes (37.22 percent) and U.S. Army veteran Bruce A. Bowman with 4,500 votes (4.37 percent) as a distant third. In Maries County, Schaefer led with 920 votes (41.33 percent) to Onder’s 770 (34.59 percent). State Rep. Justin Hicks, who finished fourth in the statewide race, finished third in Maries County with 212 votes (9.52 percent). Bowman finished fourth in the county with 145 votes (6.51 percent).

Democrat Bethany E. Mann won her party’s nomination for the congressional seat with 25,730 votes (73.45 percent) to Andrew Daly’s 9,303 votes (26.55 percent). Mann led Maries County with 101 votes (68.24 percent) to Daly’s 47 votes (31.76 percent).

Libertarian Jordan Rowden, of Vienna, was uncontested in the primary and will appear on the ballot in November.

Incumbent Republican Sen. Josh Hawley ran unopposed in the primary. His Democratic challenger will be Lucas Kunce, who received 255,309 votes (67.66 percent). Following Kunce were state Sen. Karla May with 87,653 votes (23.23 percent) and December L. Harmon with 26,732 votes (7.09 percent). Kunce led Maries County with 128 votes (79.01 percent) followed by May with 21 votes (12.96 percent) and Harmon with 11 votes (6.79 percent).

Libertarian W.C. Young ran unopposed and will appear on the ballot in November.

Voters also considered two constitutional amendments during the primary.

Constitutional Amendment No. 1 would allow child care facilities to be exempt from property taxes. The amendment failed to pass with only 490,220 votes (45.27 percent) in favor of it. In Maries County, the amendment received 1,068 votes (42.16 percent) in approval.

Constitutional Amendment No. 4 would create a constitutional exemption in order to raise minimum funding for a police force established by a state board of police commissioners. The only police department governed at the state level is Kansas City. The amendment passed with 549,116 votes (51.18 percent) in approval. The amendment did not have Maries County voters’ support with only 1,223 votes (49.06 percent) in favor of it.