SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Polls have closed and results are flooding in for the 2022 midterm elections. Missourians voted on who will represent them in Washington and Jefferson City today. There were also local issues in many cities and counties including taxes for police and sheriff’s departments and in Springfield, a years-long battle over zoning in the Galloway neighborhood is on the ballot.

U.S. Senate race

Republican Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has won the race for Missouri’s U.S. Senate seat, defeating Democrat Trudy Busch Valentine.

Busch Valentine had an uphill battle to claim the Senate seat in Missouri, a red state. Only three Democrats have been elected to a federal Senate seat in Missouri since 1970: Stuart Symington, Thomas Eagleton and Claire McCaskill. Jean Carnahan was appointed to fill her husband Mel Carnahan’s seat after his posthumous election in 2000.

Libertarian Jonathan Dine and Paul Venable of the Constitution Party were also on the November ballot. They ran unopposed in the primary.

In March 2021, Senator Roy Blunt announced he would not seek re-election. His Senate tenure will come to an end in January 2023. 

Missouri State Auditor

Republican Scott Fitzpatrick, who is currently Missouri’s State Treasurer won the race for Missouri State Auditor Tuesday.

Current State Auditor Nicole Galloway announced in June 2021 that she would not seek reelection. Galloway unsuccessfully challenged Missouri Governor Mike Parson for the Governor’s seat in 2020.

U.S. House District 7

Republican Eric Burlison won the Missouri U.S. District 7 race over Democrat Kristen Radaker-Sheafer Tuesday.

Billy Long has represented Missouri’s Seventh Congressional District in Washington, D.C. since 2011. Long did not run for the office again because he entered the U.S. Senate race. Long placed fourth in the race, earning 5% of the vote in the Republican primary. He conceded the race and congratulated Schmitt on his GOP win before the race had been officially called.

U.S. House District 4

Another seat left vacant by a U.S. Senate hopeful is the Missouri District Four seat, which is held by Vicky Hartzler. Hartzler ranked second in the Republican primary race.

Mark Alford won the U.S. District 4 seat over Democrat, Jack Truman and Libertarian Randy LangKraehr.

The district covers central Missouri including Webster, Dallas, Laclede, Pulaski, Camden, Hickory, St. Clair, Cedar and Dade counties. 

U.S. House District 8

Missouri’s U.S. Representative for District Eight represents south-central and southeast Missouri including Wright, Douglas, Texas, Ozark and Howell counties.

Incumbent Jason Smith won the U.S. District 8 seat Tuesday.

Missouri State Senate races in the Springfield area

State Senate District 30 | Springfield: Incumbent Lincoln Hough defeated Democrat Raymond Lampert.

State Senate District 20 | Greene, Webster and Dade Counties: Curtis Trent, was on the ballot unopposed. Trent is currently a state representative for Missouri House District 133.

State Senate District 16 | Laclede, Wright and Pulaski Counties: Justin Brown defeated Tara Anura.

State Senate District 28 | Polk, Dallas, Hickory, St. Clair and Cedar Counties: Sandy Crawford ran unopposed Tuesday.

Missouri State House races in the Springfield area

In the State House races in the Ozarks, two incumbents from the Democrat party, House Minority Leader Crystal Quade and MO 135 Representative Betsy Fogle kept their seats. One seat, MO 136 flipped to blue when Democrat Stephanie Hein defeated Republican incumbent Craig Fishel.

The District 133 (west-central Springfield) contest was between Democrat Amy Blansit, who is running for the first time, and Republican Melanie Stinnett, who won the seat.

The District 134 (Battlefield) race went to Republican Alex Riley, who currently holds the office after he earned more votes than Democrat Samantha Deaton.

Other ballot issues

Recreational marijuana: Recreational marijuana passed Tuesday night, by a 6.2% margin with 99% of the vote in. Read more about what’s in the amendment and what it means for Missourians.

Amendment 1: With 99% of the vote in, Amendment 1, which asked voters if the State Treasurer should have more authority in deciding how to invest the state’s funds, has failed. 54% of voters decided not to expand the Treasurer’s authority.

Amendment 4: This amendment only affects Kansas City’s state board of police commissioners and its funding. It passed, meaning Kansas City will be required to increase its minimum police funding.

Amendment 5: Amendment 5 will create a new state agency for the Missouri National Guard. With 60% of voters saying “yes,” the amendment easily passed on Tuesday.

Constitutional Convention Question: A “yes” vote to this question would have allowed the Missouri Governor to call delegates to a convention to revise the state’s constitution. The question failed, with 67% of voters saying they did not want a constitutional convention.

Local issues in the Ozarks

After years of back-and-forth over whether to zone property across from Springfield’s Sequiota Park to make way for a development featuring apartments and retail space, the issue ended up making it to the ballot Tuesday. 70% of voters said “no” to zoning the land along Lone Pine Avenue in the Galloway neighborhood for a new development.

Several law enforcement agencies asked voters to approve tax increases to fund expansions to the departments including new buildings or money to hire more officers. These questions failed in Nixa and Ozark. However, in Strafford, 66% of voters approved a new sales tax for law enforcement.

A local use tax passed in Monett, and that money will pay for law enforcement, fire and an overpass project.

Voters in Lake Ozark passed Question 1, which asked voters to approve the use of an existing tax to pay for improvements to water and sewer systems as well as road improvements.

See full election results here. We are still working to get results from some local counties.