What does it take to lead the 25th Senate District? Candidates weigh in

Four candidates will square off in Missouri’s Aug. 4 primary for the 25th Senate District seat being vacated by Doug Libla because of term limits.

Each candidate was asked the same series of questions and their responses are listed in the order they appear on the ballot. This is the first of three articles sharing the views of these candidates. This coverage will continue in the Wednesday and Friday editions of the Daily American Republic. A video of the candidates speaking on area issues can also be found online at www.darnews.com.

Jeff Shawan

Jeff Shawan of Poplar Bluff is running for Senate after one term as representative for Missouri’s 153rd district.

Shawan believes the most important duties for a senator are to “represent not only the core values, but the issues for the folks of Southeast Missouri.

“We’re the poorest part of the state, and job growth and economic development are our biggest challenges, while at the same time, protecting and helping agriculture, our No. 1 industry in Missouri.”

Shawan cites a common problem with legislators from the larger cities, who, he said, do not understand the rural way of life.

“I often tell St. Louisans ‘when you go to Schnucks, everything in the produce aisle or the meat aisle - that didn’t just happen. You depend on rural Missouri not only for the largest industry in Missouri but also to eat.’ They lose sight of that, and it’s a huge issue,” Shawan said.

Shawan would like to see a “better appropriation of the funds” and said he would work toward that goal.

General revenue funds, he said, “are all we can really appropriate.

“There’s no question in my mind there are special interests who are always there at the appropriations side of things making sure they get their pet project financed, and when you look at a budget that in the last 10 years has grown from $20 billion to $30.5 billion, and yet we don’t have money to fix our highways, I question the appropriation of the monies we have.

“Everything gets chipped up and decided in the budget at the appropriations level, and when you consider that 40% of all our spending is Medicaid and then there’s a lot of additional monies that are guaranteed to go out a particular direction, like education, there’s a pretty small pie for us to decide on.”

If elected, Shawan said, he will be a full-time senator.

“People tend to think of it as a part time job because the session is from January through May, but the truth is it’s an all-encompassing job that’s year-round with unbelievable hours,” he said.

Jason Bean

Jason Bean of Peach Orchard, in the Missouri bootheel, has never served in an elected office but is seeking the 25th Senate seat.

Bean feels the most important duty as a senator is “to represent the people. You’re elected, and that’s it. You need to be accessible and to listen to concerns. You need to understand the concerns of the district and do everything that’s in your power to act upon those needs.”

The district, he feels, has a great infrastructure, and “I feel like I have a true understanding of that.”

Economic development, Bean said, is something he would like to see improved.

“That’s my No. 1 priority, and I think, if anything, if there is a positive out of COVID, there’s a definite movement to move manufacturing jobs out of other countries. So if there is a chance and a time for us to bring manufacturing jobs back to the 25th, it’s now,” Bean said.

A senator’s job is never done, Bean said, though many constituents feel since the typical session is less than five months long, that’s all they do.

As a senator, he said, he will work year-round.

He plans to travel the district with a mobile listening post “to make sure we’re in all the counties we represent at least three or four times a year to be accessible.”

Eddy Justice

Eddy Justice of Poplar bluff has never served in an elected capacity, but is seeking the 25th Senate seat.

“The most important duty of a senator in the 25th district is to represent the values and ideals of the people of the 25th district to the best of my ability,” said Justice.

He believes the 25th District has “very Midwestern values, and that’s exactly who I am.”

Justice cites the diversity of the district, from cattle and hay ranches to row crops and everything in between, saying “You have to be on your toes and be willing to understand different ideals and different cultures.”

Education funding, Justice said, is a major concern.

“I will fight to either modify or replace the funding formula of education. Currently there are some schools in metro areas getting over $14,000 per student per year from the State of Missouri, the taxpayer. In Southeast Missouri, schools are receiving less than $9,000 in some cases,” he said. “Now I understand that there are cost of living issues etc., but don’t tell me the children of Southeast Missouri are worth barely over half of what children in the metro areas are worth. Southeast Missouri is not getting its fair share of the pie to fulfill our promise of a quality education.”

A business attitude, Justice said, is necessary in Jefferson City to properly represent such a diverse district.

“I think a lot of people don’t realize the size of the territory. There’s eight counties, all the way from Summersville in the northwest in Shannon County to Cooter in the far southeast in the bottom of the bootheel. These people are the best of the best in the Midwest,” he said.

Steve Cookson

Steve Cookson of Poplar Bluff previously served eight years in the Missouri House of Representatives serving the 153rd District and now is seeking the 25th District senate seat.

Cookson feels the most important duty of a senator is “to listen to the constituents and represent them in Jefferson City. That is our job. It’s about the people.”

With the current happenings, Cookson said, he is concerned about what he calls the “assault on public education that’s happening now.”

With his education background, Cookson said, the push for more charter schools concerns him.

“There are those ultra-conservatives taking over up there that want to do away with public schools because they see them as socialist entities. That’s why they are trying hard to push charter schools,” he said.

To stop bills with that agenda, he said, a senator must filibuster such legislation.

“Libla and Romine were able to threaten to filibuster,” he said, but with the latter’s resignation, it “only left Libla, and had COVID not come along and shut things down, it was going to happen last year.”

Cookson also is interested in “looking at our criminal justice system and tweaking that some, basically so that if somebody was convicted back 25 years ago for something that has been legalized now, they don’t have to stay in the justice system. If they show they have good character, and a non-violent felony, they can lose that felony,” he said.

Drawing on his faith, Cookson said, “I just think my Creator has a plan for me, and that’s my resolve.”

Legislative experience, Cookson said, is something the public may not understand the importance of.

“Experience gets results, and this position and other Southern Missouri positions need to be filled with people with experience and the understanding that we are being vastly abused by the urban legislators. We have to have a coalition that will not cave to them or their big money,” he said. “I’m not going to be influenced.”

He cited the recent right to work push by conservatives as an example.

“We would like each county to vote on right to work, but the urban legislators won’t allow that to happen because they’re afraid the industries would relocate to this part of the state,” he said. “St. Louis has always had a Chicago mentality, but they have all the money, and that’s how they abuse us.”