Whenever Missouri Democrats have their annual Truman Dinner in St. Louis, speakers talk optimistically about their party’s future and how they have what it takes to deliver electoral defeat to Republicans.
That hasn’t happened in the past few years, especially as the popularity of Donald Trump elevated Republicans to their highest point in Missouri in modern history. But Colin Lovett, a Democrat who came within 181 votes of capturing a St. Louis County House seat in 2022, said he’s sensing a change among voters who are growing weary of GOP dysfunction.
“People are sick and tired of the games and the show of targeting trans kids and banning books in libraries,” Lovett said. “It's not resonating with the folks in our district. And I don't think it's resonating anywhere.”
It’s not surprising that Lovett’s sentiments were a common theme for Missouri Democrats on Wednesday at the Truman Dinner. After all, the sold-out event occurred roughly 24 hours after eight Republicans led a rebellion that ousted Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
While leaders in the Missouri House and Senate are in firm control of their chambers, former state Rep. Clem Smith said the Republican infighting in the General Assembly is making Democrats look more appealing.
“What you see going on in Washington, D.C., is a small example of some of the stuff that's been going on in Missouri. And people are waking up,” said Smith, a former state lawmaker. “They're tired of the foolishness. They want to see good governance, and they want their tax dollars … spent wisely.”
Whether Smith’s prediction comes true won’t be known until next year, when the party’s candidates run in one of the more crucial election cycles in recent memory.
That’s when a number of Missouri’s statewide offices, including the governorship, will be up for grabs. And three Democratic candidates are seeking the chance to oust U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, who was the target of most of the ire from attendees at the dinner.
“I think that everyone's No. 1 goal is to make sure Hawley doesn't go back to the Senate,” said state Rep. Steve Butz, D-St. Louis.
But Hawley and other Republicans will have plenty of advantages next year. And it’s not clear whether groups like the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee will see Missouri as a priority.
Any Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate or statewide office will have to win back voters in rural and suburban counties that have become more Republican in recent years. As the GOP presidential nominee, Trump won Missouri's electoral votes in 2016 and 2020 by sizable margins.
House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, a candidate for Missouri governor, said breaking through will require more outreach to voters — and a clear message that Democrats can be a better alternative to Republicans who’ve dominated state politics for the past few election cycles.
“It's all about talking to folks and listening and showing up, and that's something that Democrats need to do everywhere,” said Quade, D-Springfield. “We need to not only show up in the cities and increase voter turnout, but we also have to show up in rural Missouri. And that's the thing that I'm definitely prepared to do over the next year.”
Harrison rallies the troops
The Truman Dinner coincided with a major Democratic National Committee event in St. Louis that brought some of the party’s top leaders to the city, including DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison. Vice President Kamala Harris is slated to speak to DNC attendees later this week.
Harrison, the keynote speaker at the Truman Dinner, spent part of his speech discussing how Missouri Democrats can turn their fortunes around. Before taking on his post in the Democratic Party, Harrison was a U.S. Senate candidate and a top aide to U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina.
“I know you may think that you're in this wilderness,” Harrison said. “You don't have the statewide offices that you used to have. You don't have the governor's office that used to have. You don't have the congressional offices that used to have. But the one thing that I've learned in life is that hope is so important. It is the fuel for change.”
Harrison said state Democrats will win again “when you give the people in Missouri hope that things will get better and that things will be different.” But he also said it will require Democratic officials to show Missourians that they want their votes.
“That means making more phone calls than you've ever made in any campaign and knocking on more doors than you've ever knocked on in your life. That means giving more money than you've ever given before,” Harrison said. “Because this is the crossroads. This is our cross to bear. We have to do everything in our power. Because democracy itself is on the line.”
Harrison said Democrats in Missouri and across the country must “double down on hope.”
“That is the engine behind our party. The superpower of the Republican Party is fear and division, bigotry and hate,” Harrison said. “But the superpower of the Democratic Party is about hope. They believe that our better days are behind us: Make America Great Again. But we believe that our better days are ahead of us.”
