Residents in Boone County’s 44th legislative district will have a new state representative in January.
Veteran State Rep. Cheri Toalson Reisch (R-Hallsville) is term-limited and is running for Boone County commissioner. Two Republicans and one Democrat are running for the seat. Ashland’s Bryce Beal and Columbia’s John Martin will face off in the August GOP primary. Martin, who owns Pro Pumping and Hydrojetting, tells 939 the Eagle that voters in the district are concerned about inflation:
“We go to the door and say what issues are important to you to this household that kind of ring your bell, and that hits the majority of it is just the high price of milk and their cars and insurance and things like that. And so, those are things that we need to address and try to reduce taxes, things like that. Try to help the average working-class,” Martin says.
Mr. Martin’s primary opponent is Mr. Beal, an assistant Missouri attorney general in the litigation division. Beal is also going door-to-door, and says residents are being hit with high property taxes:
“There’s not a ton that we can do at the state level to affect fiscal policy at the national level. But I’ve been focusing on the fact that Missouri has the third-highest personal property taxes in the country. In this economy, folks just simply can’t afford to pay multi-thousand dollar personal property tax bills at the first of the year. So we need to give folks relief there,” says Beal.
Martin notes the 44th’s boundaries have changed and says he likes the new district. He says voters know him across the district:
“It picked up Ashland and Hartsburg so it still has Centralia, Hallsville, kind of east Boone County, Lake of the Woods area. And then now it has the great town of Ashland and Hartsburg and all the people in south Boone County. Yeah, the campaign is going very well. As I get to know people, a lot of people know me already as a business owner with Pro Pumping and Hydrojetting. A lot of people know me from my 30 years of ministry,” says Martin.
Beal, a Missouri assistant attorney general, says he’s especially concerned about illegal immigration and fentanyl:
“Highway 70 coming right through this area. You know, we’re seeing fentanyl overdoses as the number one leading cause of death in Missouri for folks 18-45,” says Beal.
Federal prosecutors have said that Boone County ranks in the top ten of all 114 Missouri counties for fatal overdose deaths, adding that fentanyl and other non-heroin opioids cause a significant majority of those deaths.
The August GOP primary winner will face Columbia Democrat Dave Raithel in November. Mr. Raithel, a veteran, says Missouri lawmakers should quit cutting taxes and fund Missouri’s schools and public infrastructure as needed. The district includes Ashland, Hartsburg, Centralia and Hallsville.
