Missouri lawmakers began their 2025 legislative session on Wednesday with Republicans banking on intraparty warfare being a thing of the past.
But an unsuccessful effort to reject Jon Patterson as House speaker perhaps showcased that the session won’t be without rancor within the GOP caucuses despite Republicans holding a supermajority.
As is usually the case, the first day of the Missouri General Assembly was largely ceremonial. House and Senate members were sworn into office, while the respective leaders of the chambers — Patterson, R-Lee’s Summit, and Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin, R-Shelbina — made speeches about what they’d like to see the next few months.
The ascensions of Patterson and O’Laughlin were historic. Patterson is the first nonwhite speaker. O’Laughlin is the first woman to be president pro tem.
“I am the first Asian American to ever serve as speaker of the Missouri House,” Patterson said. “But here in this body, our uniqueness is forgotten on this floor. We lose our names. Here, I am only the gentleman from Jackson County. This is not a place for egos.”
But before he took the oath as speaker, Patterson had to fend off a challenge from Justin Sparks — a St. Louis County Republican who took the unprecedented step of running for speaker after the GOP caucus chose its designee. Patterson ended up winning 152-10.
Among those who voted for Sparks was Bryant Wolfin, a Republican from Ste. Genieneve. He said, “Power has steadily shifted away from the people and this body concentrated instead in the hands of a few.” Others expressed dismay about Patterson's votes, including his opposition in 2023 to a ban on most gender-affirming care for minors.
“Today, the speaker holds a level of authority that would make even a monarch blush,” Wolfin said. “This is not what self-government looks like.”
After the House adjourned, Patterson said Sparks’ challenge was about “a person with an oceanic ego who took it upon himself to make this day about himself.”
“I respect a lot of the people that came to the Capitol today to peacefully express their views,” Patterson said. “I think that's actually a great thing, but that was not about any policy agenda.”
Sparks said in a statement on X the lawmakers who voted for him exhibited political courage.
“They chose to listen to their constituents and vote to decentralize the power of the speaker's office and send that power back to where it belongs - the people,” Sparks wrote. “This is why we will win. You can’t threaten us, you can’t buy us, and you can’t ignore us anymore.”
Historically, the House minority leaders put themselves up for speaker. But Minority Leader Ashley Aune, D-Kansas City, ended up withdrawing. While she mentioned afterward that she developed a good relationship with Patterson, Aune added that he may have trouble dealing with the right flank of his caucus.
“He built a very conservative coalition to get where he is today,” Aune said. “He had to appease the folks on the far right of his caucus to earn their trust. I think he will move further to the right than we've seen him before, and I'll be interested to see how that takes shape this session.”
Legislative leaders set their priorities
Both Patterson and O’Laughlin will be tasked with maintaining order and unity in their caucuses, which will be a critical factor in determining whether Gov.-elect Mike Kehoe’s agenda makes it through the legislature. Both emphasized bolstering public safety as a key priority, dovetailing with Kehoe’s promise to roll out a plan to reduce crime as soon as he’s sworn into office next week.
“Too many Missouri families are being torn apart by violence and crime,” Patterson said. “Nothing is more harmful to the growth of our state than criminals who roam our streets with little fear of punishment. Therefore, we must pass legislation that addresses the critical issue of public safety.”
O’Laughlin’s speech also emphasized her opposition to abortion and the “normalization” of drug use — a not-so-subtle reference to how Missouri voters approved constitutional amendments legalizing abortion and recreational marijuana.
“As a woman, I have seen firsthand how the role of the family has been transformed and sadly too often trivialized,” O’Laughlin said. “Mothers have been undervalued, fathers have been dismissed, and the institution of marriage has been diminished. These shifts have left deep and lasting challenges for families across our state.”
Some Republicans have filed ballot items that would scale back much of the constitutional protection for abortion. Patterson in particular said there’s interest in changing the definition of fetal viability, which is currently the point at which a medical professional determines a fetus could survive outside the womb without extraordinary medical intervention.
Aune said voters spoke in November against legislators curbing abortion rights.
“I believe that it is incumbent upon us, as the folks who are sent down here and entrusted to represent them in the legislature, to uphold the will of the voters,” Aune said.
Additionally, O’Laughlin dedicated a major part of her speech decrying what she said was the “failure” of Missouri’s child welfare system. That echoes her comments to St. Louis Public Radio last year when O’Laughlin said that Missouri’s Children’s Division needed a reset, including a major pay increase for investigators who look into alleged child abuse and neglect.
“Children in crisis deserve more than delayed action and endless uncertainty,” O’Laughlin said. “They deserve a clear and stable path to safety, permanency and hope for a better future. Our responsibility is not just to respond, it is to act with purpose and urgency, ensuring the best outcomes for the most vulnerable among us.”
Looking for harmony
Much of the discord in past sessions occurred in the Senate, particularly between GOP leadership and a group of lawmakers known as the Freedom Caucus.
Several lawmakers who were agitators against GOP leadership, such as former Sens. Bill Eigel and Denny Hoskins, are now gone. And there’s some optimism that there may be less factionalism than in years past.
“We owe it to the people of Missouri to ensure their hard-earned tax dollars are not wasted on political agendas but invested in ways that strengthen our communities and deliver results that are as solid as the values we represent,” O’Laughlin said. “I am excited for the work ahead.”
Sen. Tracy McCreery, D-St. Louis County, said there are more commonalities between Republicans and Democrats than people think. Members of both parties, for instance, have said they want to help defray the cost of child care.
“I have great confidence that we're going to be able to accomplish a lot of things, quite honestly,” McCreery said. “When I listen closely to her [O’Laughlin’s] priorities, most of those are values that the Republicans and the Democrats share quite honestly. Of course, there's always going to be a couple of things that are more controversial, and those are probably the things that were going to cause great angst.”
