Jack Suntrup

1 month ago | stltoday.com | Jack Suntrup |Kurt Erickson |Ezra Bitterman

JEFFERSON CITY — Gov. Mike Kehoe celebrated a string of legislative victories Thursday as lawmakers bolted from the Capitol for a weeklong spring break. The new Republican governor held a news conference with GOP leaders and legislators, touting a state takeover of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department that awaits his signature. Kehoe said his team will conduct a bill review next week and said that he could sign the takeover plan Wednesday.

2 months ago | stltoday.com | Jack Suntrup |Ezra Bitterman

JEFFERSON CITY — Nearly a decade after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, the Missouri Senate on Monday voted to keep an old prohibition against it on the books. While same-sex marriages are currently allowed in Missouri, and the statutory ban has only a symbolic effect, senators voted 6-19 against an amendment by Sen. Stephen Webber, D-Columbia, to allow the statutory ban to expire in August.

2 months ago | stltoday.com | Jack Suntrup |Kurt Erickson

JEFFERSON CITY — Gov. Mike Kehoe, in his first State of the State address on Tuesday, called for dramatic changes to the state’s education system including state-funded vouchers and an open-enrollment system for students. Included in Kehoe’s spending $53.7 billion spending proposal is a $50 million outlay to jumpstart the state’s private school voucher program, a Republican-backed program originally designed to run on volunteer contributions and tax credits, not general revenue.

Jan 13, 2025 | stltoday.com | Jack Suntrup |Kurt Erickson |Ezra Bitterman

JEFFERSON CITY — Michael L. Kehoe became Missouri’s 58th governor on Monday, reciting the oath of office before over 1,000 spectators gathered outside the Capitol in freezing temperatures. Kehoe was sworn in, using his late mother’s Bible, by former U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt. After the oath of office, the Missouri National Guard performed a 19-gun salute and three fighter jets flew over the Capitol.

Jan 8, 2025 | stltoday.com | Jack Suntrup |Ezra Bitterman

JEFFERSON CITY — Both chambers of the Missouri Legislature broke new ground on Wednesday, with the House electing its first Asian American speaker and the Senate electing a woman as president of the chamber for the first time. Dr. Jonathan Patterson, a Republican from Lee’s Summit, became the new speaker of the Missouri House on Wednesday after fending off a challenger from his own party. Patterson, who faced state Rep. Justin Sparks of Wildwood in the race, won the speakership on a 152-10 vote.