MOScout Weekender: STL City Poll - Gunn Starts New Firm - Hallway on Kehoe Agenda - Who Won the Week and more…

Remington/MOScout Poll: St. Louis City Mayoral Race

Survey conducted January 29 through January 30, 2025. 507 likely Municipal Election voters

participated in the survey. Survey weighted to match expected turnout demographics. Margin of

Error is +/-4% with a 95% level of confidence. Totals do not always equal 100% due to

rounding. Survey conducted by Remington Research Group on behalf of Missouri Scout.
See the full report here.

Q1: What is your opinion of Michael “Mike” Butler?

Favorable: 13%

Unfavorable: 11%

No opinion: 75%

Q2: What is your opinion of Tishaura O. Jones?

Favorable: 21%

Unfavorable: 62%

No opinion: 16%

Q3: What is your opinion of Cara Spencer?

Favorable: 50%

Unfavorable: 18%

No opinion: 32%

Q4: What is your opinion of Andrew Jones?

Favorable: 8%

Unfavorable: 18%

No opinion: 73%

What It Means

I asked simple fav/unfav because the city has approval voting.  Residents can vote for more than one candidate in the March primary.  The top two vote-getters go on to a “run-off” general election in April.

·       The poll confirms the “vibe” that a lot city residents are blaming Mayor Jones for the slow snow and ice removal.  Those feelings of discontent could fade as the episode recedes into the past.

·       Meanwhile, Mike Butler and Andrew Jones have high “no opinion” presumably corresponding to low name ID.

Remember: This election is happening while the City fights to keep control of its police force in Jeff City.

Limbaugh for Kinder

Former Liuetenant Governor Peter Kinder unveiled a video endorsement from David Limbaugh, the brother of the late Rush Limbaugh.  Kinder is running to be the Party Chair of the Missouri Republican Party against former Sen. Bill Eigel. 

The vote is at 10AM today.  Kinder is expected to prevail.

Gunn Hangs Out a Shingle

Amy Gunn, immediate past president of MATA, and Erica Slater have opened a new law firm, Gunn Slater.  See the website here.

·       From Gunn’s bio page: My motto is simple: “I’m nice, until I’m provoked.”

Brinker to Greater St. Louis

Press release: Greater St. Louis, Inc. announced today that it has hired Franklin County Presiding Commissioner Tim Brinker to fill the newly created role of Senior Vice President for Government Relations…. Brinker has served as Presiding Commissioner of Franklin County since August of 2018, when he was appointed by Governor Mike Parson to fill the unexpired term of John Greishiemer. He was elected to a full term as Presiding Commissioner in November 2018.

MOScout’s Hallway Index: Kehoe Priorities

I asked lobbyists, “Which Kehoe priority will face the toughest challenge this session?” 23  replies…

RESULTS

1. General revenue for ESA… 39.1%

2. New income tax cuts… 26.1%

3. St. Louis police takeover… 21.7%

4. He runs the table… 13%

Sample of Comments

·       Many think the STL police takeover is a slam dunk. It is not.

·       [He runs the table] He is much more engaged than Parson, and the leadership in House is so much weaker than ever before. Kehoe runs the table in the House through force of personality and then leans on relationships in Senate to get through that chamber.

·       Underfunding the formula, then giving public dollars to private schools isn't a campaign winning message.

·       Income tax cut still seems like a tough row to hoe.

·       [New income tax cuts] Republicans will get weak-kneed on the issue since revenues are coming in low.

·       None of the above. Foundation formula tweak will be the hardest.

Who Won the Week?

David Wasinger – Steps out early and shows he’s not going to be a potted plant LG.  He will have his own agenda beyond the traditional functions of the office.

Kit Bond Strategies – Hires Derek Coats to lead their team in Jefferson City.  Coats managed Kehoe’s campaign.

Karla Eslinger – Governor Mike Kehoe’s call to re-write the school funding formula together with the push to supercharge school choice funding, means that the former senator has found herself in the middle of a potentially transformative time for Missouri education.  The impact of how she manages these efforts will be felt for years.

Cara Spencer – Landing big checks, and the MOScout/Remington poll shows large negatives for incumbent Tishaura Jones.  But the actual run-off election is still two months away… 

Find a downloadable version here.

Gubby Appts

Governor Mike Kehoe announced the appointment of Megan Page, of Sedalia, as Pettis County Clerk.

$5K+ Contributions

Committee for Independence MO - $10,000 from Operating Engineers Local 101 Political Action Committee.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to Ashley Lawson, and Rob Krosley.

Sunday: Sen. David Gregory, Jim Foley, Otto Fajen, Elaine Gannon, Angie Heffer, and Judi Moriarty.