Two vying to be lieutenant governor have active political histories

Seeking Missouri's No. 2 job

Two men with plenty of political experience want to be Missouri's next lieutenant governor.

Democrat Russ Carnahan, of St. Louis, hails from a well-known political family and has been elected to both the Missouri House of Representatives (two two-year terms) and the U.S. House (four two-year terms).

Republican Mike Parson, of Bolivar, is in the middle of his second four-year term in the Missouri Senate, after serving three two-year terms in the House. Before that, Parson served a dozen years as Polk County's sheriff.

Both want to succeed Republican Peter Kinder, who's served 12 years as lieutenant governor.

The job is considered full time and pays $86,484 a year - the lowest salary among the six statewide elected officials. The governor's $133,821 a year is the highest. The attorney general is paid $116,437, and the secretary of state, auditor and treasurer each earn $107,746.

Missouri's governor and lieutenant governor don't run as a team, and there have been several instances in recent Missouri history where the governor was from one party while the lieutenant governor was from the other - including the current split between Kinder and Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon.

Some Missourians wonder why the state even has the No. 2 job.

"I think the lieutenant governor is a leadership role, and I think we need people in public service (who) believe in just that - that you're a public servant, no more, no less," Parson said in a 20-minute interview last week.

"It's about going out there and trying to make the state a better place for the next generations, and above all, I think it's our job to make sure those next generations have the same opportunity that all of us have (had)."

Neither Carnahan nor his staff responded to multiple requests for an interview for this story.

On his website, Carnahan said: "I am running for Lieutenant Governor of Missouri because I believe this is a great state and Missourians deserve a better, brighter future.

"It is my job to listen, lead and deliver for the citizens of the Show-Me State."

Carnahan pointed to a variety of experiences that can help him be a good lieutenant governor.

"I have been a practicing attorney, including serving on a legal aid panel representing low-income clients," he said. "I served as director of government relations for one of our state's largest health care systems.

"Now Debra and I operate a small business (and) our family farm is in Phelps County south of Rolla."

During his interview, Parson also cited a varied background.

"I grew up on a farm, and for the most part, my folks never had a lot of material things," he explained. "I've worked hard all my life, and everything I've ever accomplished in my life, it seems, I went through hard work and sometimes the school of hard knocks.

"I think having a farming background, small-business background, being a sheriff and, I think, life as a family man - those accomplishments are all what makes you qualified to be an elected leader."

On his website, Carnahan talks about growing up in Rolla, where he "learned the value of public service and giving back to your community watching my father, Mel Carnahan, work on our local school board. He believed that public service was a high calling that was worthy of his time and talents.

"Public service and good government start with integrity and trust."

The lieutenant governor's main constitutional job is presiding over the Missouri Senate's sessions and being available to break tie votes when they occur - which has been rare in recent decades.

But lawmakers over the years have given the office statutory duties, including being the official advocate for veterans and senior citizens and serving on the state Tourism Commission.

Parson thinks the lieutenant governor should be an active voice in helping shape state policies, and he promised to work with the next governor - whoever that is.

"It's about moving the state forward," Parson explained. "It's about doing the right thing."

He acknowledged he will have disagreements with the next governor.

"It's a matter of getting over it and going to the next step - going to the next thing you do agree on," Parson said. "Whoever the next governor is, I want to figure out ways that I can work with him on things that should be good for all Missourians."

TRANSPORTATION

On his website, Carnahan pointed to some of his congressional votes supporting transportation funding and said Missouri must be "investing in our infrastructure by repairing the roads and bridges that are the backbone of our economy."

Parson said: "We're going to have to figure out a way to rebuild our infrastructure, how you fund it, how you pay for it."

The issue is about more than roads and bridges, Parson said.

"We've got to figure out a way to build up our airports, our roads, our ports," he explained. "Our ports are going to be a big issue I think before this is all over, with some of the demands that are going to be on our state."

EDUCATION

"We've got to find a better way to prepare our kids, our young adults, for the workforce," Parson said. "We've got to start preparing kids when they come out of college for what are the demands of the workforce out there, and are they prepared for that?

"Frankly, not all kids are going to end up in four-year degree institutions," and some won't go to any higher education program.

Carnahan's website said he wants to give "students an opportunity to have a great education. We need to do better in education, from early childhood to grade school and college."

CAMPAIGN FINANCE

Parson thinks the state needs to address reform after having no campaign-funding limits during the last decade.

"Right now, you've just got a number of large donors in this state who are trying to have a dramatic influence over the process," he explained. "Everybody has a right, if you've got money and you want to spend it - I get that.

"But I think the truth of the matter is, the person who wants to give you $25 or $100, you're diluting the process for them."

Under the current system, he said, people aren't always "accountable for what they say. When you're out there trying to destroy people's lives, just because you have money - I think everybody should be accountable if you're telling lies about people."

Carnahan wasn't specific about campaign finances but said: "We need bold leaders willing to think big, take on the real problems and listen.

"Together, we can revive the principles and trust that make our great state even better and our citizens' futures even brighter, focus on cleaning up the political mess in Jefferson City where too many of our elected officials are far too disconnected from the concerns of ordinary Missouri citizens."

BUDGETS AND BUSINESS CLIMATE

Parson, a member of the Senate's Appropriations Committee, said state government is in pretty good financial shape, "but there are certain things you've got to do, and you've got to pay for it."

But Missouri needs to do more to attract new businesses, and "it's important to remember that 80 percent of the new jobs created in this state come from businesses that already exist in this state."

Carnahan's website points to a number of votes he made in both the Missouri Legislature and in Congress positioning "Missouri as a global leader in clean energy research, innovation and production, particularly in the area of biofuels" and "helping more technological breakthroughs from the research and development phase to the market."

He added: "We need to do better for those working two jobs and still not making ends meet. We need to do better to help those starting and growing their own businesses."

ABORTION

Parson is pro-life but expects abortion to remain an issue in the future.

Carnahan is pro-choice.

MEDICAID

As for Medicaid expansion, proposed as part of the Affordable Care Act but left to the states to implement by a Supreme Court ruling, Parson said: "I'm not interested in doing anything until you figure out how Obamacare even works - I think there's still so much doubt at the federal level (about) how it's going to be implemented, and we see every day there's more and more problems coming out of it.

"For us to ever expand that, you're going to have to have reforms in the state first," Parson said.

Carnahan's website doesn't show a position on the issue.

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Meet the lieutenant governor candidates:

MIKE PARSON

Age: 61

Family: Married to Teresa for "30-plus" years; two adult children and five grandchildren.

Education background: High school graduate; college studies while in the Army, but did not graduate.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE

The next quarterly campaign finance report is due Oct. 15 for the July 1-Sept. 30 fundraising period.

But the candidates also had to file a "30 days after the primary election report," and it showed, as of Sept. 1, Parson had:

Raised $1,744,703.76 for the full election cycle.

Spent $2,056,280.15.

Debt (including credit charges) of $102,084.62.

$72,334.01 cash on hand.

State law requires candidates to report within 48 hours any contributions received that are $5,000 or more.

From Sept. 1-30, Parson raised an additional $275,202.43 in eight separate donations - making his total receipts $2,019,906.19 through Sept. 30.

RUSS CARNAHAN

Age: 58

Family: Married to Debra; two sons.

Education background: Bachelor's and law degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE

The next quarterly campaign finance report is due Oct. 15 for the July 1-Sept. 30 fundraising period.

But the candidates also had to file a "30 days after the primary election report," and it showed, as of Sept. 1, Carnahan had:

Raised $751,331.04 for the full election cycle.

Spent $220,396.97.

No debt (including credit charges).

$508,801.19 cash on hand.

State law requires candidates to report within 48 hours any contributions received that are $5,000 or more.

From Sept. 1-30, Carnahan raised an additional $175,100 in 10 separate donations - making his total receipts $926,431.04 through Sept. 30.