State Sen. Karla May is used to defying electoral expectations.
During her time in politics, the St. Louis Democrat beat an incumbent state senator, the husband of a future mayor and a sitting state House member. She also outflanked future St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones in a 2016 contest for Democratic committeewoman.
Now, May is facing perhaps her most challenging endeavor: prevailing in an Aug. 6 Democratic U.S. Senate primary against Independence resident Lucas Kunce. He has raised millions of dollars and picked up a slew of key endorsements in the quest to take on GOP Sen. Josh Hawley in November.
During an episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, May laid out a case that she is more well known in Democratic political circles than people realize — especially because of her advocacy for the party’s principles in the Missouri Senate.
“People keep asking: ‘What's the path to victory here?'” May said. “I've been in the legislature for 14 years. And while I've been in the legislature, I've had many accomplishments, I have a proven track record of getting things done. And most people around the state know me, because I've traveled around the state while performing my duties as an elected legislative senator.”
While Kunce has raised far more money than May, she does have support from some key political figures. Earlier this month, Jones announced that she was endorsing May.
“I feel like if I can get my information to them, and let them know about my record, I can be successful,” May said.
Backing Biden
May emphatically says President Joe Biden should not drop out of the presidential contest.
While emphasizing that she wasn’t trying to argue “President Biden is not an aged man,” she said she’ll “take wisdom and age and a few missteps in oratory over somebody who has no substance.”
“I will take wisdom over lies any day,” May said. “And I've been in this legislature and I've seen the perpetuation of untruths, and those are not good for our democracy. And so I think that Biden can win. And I think that he should stay in the race.”
May also said she is supportive of Israel, adding that the United States needs to back its allies — and be willing to criticize their political leadership when they’re wrong.
“So if there's a problem with the way [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] is handling the war, we have a right to call them out on that,” May said. “But you still don't abandon your allies in the middle of a battle.”
She reiterated that she supports continued assistance for Ukraine to repel Russia’s invasion. But May also said that as a U.S. senator, she would analyze any aid proposal to make sure it includes military support that will actually help Ukraine advance in the war that’s lasted for more than two years.
“You don't blindly vote for anything,” May said. “You're going to have to evaluate every piece of legislation.”
Abortion rights
Like Kunce, May is supportive of abortion rights and said she would back legislation as a senator to expand access to the procedure throughout the country.
Missouri banned most abortions in 2022 after the demise of Roe v. Wade, but the state’s voters may enact a constitutional amendment rolling back that measure and other abortion restrictions.
“I think that abortion should be accessible for individuals who need to make that decision, point blank,” she said.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Ulaa Kuziez, Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr and the production intern is Roshae Hemmings. Send questions and comments about this story to talk@stlpr.org.
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