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Decisions that voters make on Tuesday will shape our community for years to come. Nowhere is that more true than in deciding on representatives in Jefferson City, where legislators decide everything from school funding to economic development tools.
Eastern Jackson County is likely to have less pull at the Capitol after this year. Seven representatives and two senators represent the lion’s share of Independence and Blue Springs, and all of but two are out after 2010, thanks to term limits, (although two are running for the state Senate, so one might have a new role). Two who are termed out have been leaders in the House. This means it’s important to have new legislators who come up to speed quickly and work effectively, even as junior legislators, to advance the area’s interests.
Next Tuesday’s party primaries will go a long way toward deciding who takes office in January.
In the Democratic primary in the 51st District – Sugar Creek, north Independence – Ira Anders is a good choice. He’s been on the Independence Board of Education and has a good understanding of how state and local policies need to mesh. Nowhere is that more critical than on school issues.
In the Democratic primary in the 52nd District – southeast Independence, Lakewood, Unity Village – Robbie Makinen would do a good job. As Jackson County’s economic development director, he has revived a moribund program, and his skills at getting divergent players with divergent agendas to work together are well suited to Jefferson City. In the Republican primary in that district, Noel Torpey is a good choice and he deserves credit for his dogged pursuit of the seat for the last several elections.
In the Republican primary in the 55th District – south Blue Springs, most of Grain Valley and Oak Grove – former Blue Springs Council Member Sheila Solon and newcomer Mike Parker are waging a fierce campaign. We give the edge to Solon for her experience, her willingness to do the homework and her willingness to go against the grain, although Parker has raised good points, too. And we would caution that the skills that make an effective city leader can be very different than those that make an effective legislator. Solon will have more homework than ever, and there is no more important skill than listening to those on the other side of the argument.
No race seems more hotly contested than the Republican primary in the 8th Senate District, a sprawling area from the Cass County line to the Missouri River, covering Lee’s Summit, Blue Springs, unincorporated parts of the county and even slices of Independence. We give the edge to state Rep. Bryan Pratt of Blue Springs, who has been a key leader in the House and has been as effective as any local legislator in advancing the area’s interests. Pratt’s record is not spotless – his claim about the “most … sweeping ethics reform bill in the universe” a couple of months ago was ludicrous – but he has been a steady voice for projects such as the proposed and highly promising Missouri Innovation Park in Blue Springs, a project that will need a strong voice in Jefferson City.
Decisions that voters make on Tuesday will shape our community for years to come. Nowhere is that more true than in deciding on representatives in Jefferson City, where legislators decide everything from school funding to economic development tools.
Eastern Jackson County is likely to have less pull at the Capitol after this year. Seven representatives and two senators represent the lion’s share of Independence and Blue Springs, and all of but two are out after 2010, thanks to term limits, (although two are running for the state Senate, so one might have a new role). Two who are termed out have been leaders in the House. This means it’s important to have new legislators who come up to speed quickly and work effectively, even as junior legislators, to advance the area’s interests.
Next Tuesday’s party primaries will go a long way toward deciding who takes office in January.
In the Democratic primary in the 51st District – Sugar Creek, north Independence – Ira Anders is a good choice. He’s been on the Independence Board of Education and has a good understanding of how state and local policies need to mesh. Nowhere is that more critical than on school issues.
In the Democratic primary in the 52nd District – southeast Independence, Lakewood, Unity Village – Robbie Makinen would do a good job. As Jackson County’s economic development director, he has revived a moribund program, and his skills at getting divergent players with divergent agendas to work together are well suited to Jefferson City. In the Republican primary in that district, Noel Torpey is a good choice and he deserves credit for his dogged pursuit of the seat for the last several elections.
In the Republican primary in the 55th District – south Blue Springs, most of Grain Valley and Oak Grove – former Blue Springs Council Member Sheila Solon and newcomer Mike Parker are waging a fierce campaign. We give the edge to Solon for her experience, her willingness to do the homework and her willingness to go against the grain, although Parker has raised good points, too. And we would caution that the skills that make an effective city leader can be very different than those that make an effective legislator. Solon will have more homework than ever, and there is no more important skill than listening to those on the other side of the argument.
No race seems more hotly contested than the Republican primary in the 8th Senate District, a sprawling area from the Cass County line to the Missouri River, covering Lee’s Summit, Blue Springs, unincorporated parts of the county and even slices of Independence. We give the edge to state Rep. Bryan Pratt of Blue Springs, who has been a key leader in the House and has been as effective as any local legislator in advancing the area’s interests. Pratt’s record is not spotless – his claim about the “most … sweeping ethics reform bill in the universe” a couple of months ago was ludicrous – but he has been a steady voice for projects such as the proposed and highly promising Missouri Innovation Park in Blue Springs, a project that will need a strong voice in Jefferson City.
