In the remaining days before the August primary St. Louis City Democrats remain divided between two candidates from well-established political pedigrees.
Democrat Russ Carnahan is challenging William Lacy Clay to represent the 1st Congressional District, which now comprises the entire city of St. Louis.
Carnahan says Clay sold out Democrats by passively endorsing Republican redistricting maps which erased Carnahan’s 3rd District and preserved Clays.
“Republican proposals were supported by Congressman Clay, by his allies in the legislature, by his attorneys in the courts,” says Carnahan. “That’s how we lost having two Democrats seats and now only having one….to support the St. Louis region for the clout of the region, to support the President.”
For his part Clay denies cooperating with Republicans and says Carnahan should have taken on Republican Ann Wagner in the suburban 2nd District, instead of trying to unseat a fellow Democrat.
“I think he would have had a great opportunity to win the seat,” Clay says. “I know he would have gotten my help. I have helped him in all of the cycles that he’s run it.”
Carnahan counters that the 2nd district is firmly located in the GOP territory of west St. Louis and St. Charles Counties…and furthermore he says he lives in the first district.
Carnahan recently picked up an endorsement from the editorial board of the St. Louis Post Dispatch.
However Clay also has a long list of backers including Governor Jay Nixon, St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley.
- For more election-related news and information, see BeyondNovember.org - a joint election project from St. Louis Public Radio, The Nine Network of Public Media and The St. Louis Beacon.
Follow Adam Allington on Twitter: @aallington
