Crystal Quade won the Democratic primary for governor Tuesday, defeating Mike Hamra by 19 percentage points when the race was called by the Associated Press shortly before 9:45 p.m.
Quade has represented her Springfield legislative district for the last eight years, becoming House minority leader in 2019.
Though Missouri voters haven’t elected a Democrat for statewide office since 2018, Quade believes she has a strong chance at winning because of the ballot measure to enshrine abortion rights in Missouri’s constitution that will likely come before voters in November.
Since June 2022, nearly every abortion has been illegal in the state with the exception of medical emergencies.
“I was there when the abortion ban was passed and stood on the House floor and shared my own personal story of abuse,” she told The Independent last month, “and so many stories and other women have shared and how these bills deeply impact our ability to plan our lives.”
Quade graduated from Missouri State University in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in social work, and then started climbing the political ladder right out of college by working for former U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill as a legislative aide.
She grew up in a small town in Southwest Missouri and says a college internship in Jefferson City pushed her to get into politics.
“I was very frustrated with a lack of understanding of what regular working class folks go through,” she said. “It was then that I decided that I wanted to get involved, and I wanted to run for office one day.”
Before heading to cast her vote at the Kansas City Urban Youth Academy, Rebecca Yang, 28, made a list of candidates’ positions on health care access, education and community health.
A few months ago, Yang, who is a medical resident in the area, went to the Missouri Capitol with her colleagues to sit in on committee hearings and meet with lawmakers.
“What was very surprising to us was that a lot of them didn’t seem to be informed on a lot of the issues, especially health care issues.”
She said it was eye-opening how politics can affect her industry and communities she serves.
“When it comes to women’s rights, especially when it comes to abortion issues, I think there are a lot of misunderstandings.”
On Tuesday she voted for Crystal Quade.
“I’m hoping for fresh faces,” she said. “I’ll leave it at that.”
Nina Hampton of Columbia took a Democratic ballot at American Legion Post 202 and voted for Quade for governor.
Abortion rights is an important issue for Hampton.
“I am in favor of women’s rights to decide what to do with their own bodies,” she said.
John Elder of Columbia also voted for Quade.
“I just felt she had the overall experience and the qualifications,” Elder said.
The Independent’s Anna Spoerre and Rudi Keller contributed to this story.
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