In July, there was one irregular officeholder transition in Missouri for offices within Ballotpedia’s coverage scope. We define irregular officeholder transitions as transitions that occur due to resignation, death, appointment, or winning of a special election in positions such as a state executive office, a seat in the General Assembly, or a non-district judgeship.
Missouri House Rep. Tricia Derges left office on July 1 after she was convicted by a federal jury of 22 medical fraud-related charges. Derges represented District 140 and had been serving in the Missouri House of Representatives since 2021. The vacancy has not been filled.
Eight seats are currently vacant in the Missouri House of Representatives, with the oldest open since April 21, 2021. On that date, former State Rep. Rick Roeber (R)—who represented District 34—was expelled from the House by unanimous vote due to allegations of child abuse. District 65 became vacant after the death of State Rep. Tom Hannegan (R) in Oct. 2021. District 114 has been vacant since Nov. 2021 and was previously held by Becky Ruth (R). In the first week of Jan. 2022, Districts 147, 108, and 61 all became vacant. They were held by Wayne Wallingford (R), Justin Hill (R), and Aaron Griesheimer (R) respectively. District 29 became vacant in April 2022 after Rory Rowland was elected as Mayor of Independence, Missouri.
Vacancies in the Missouri General Assembly are filled through a special election called by the governor. Missouri is one of 25 states that fill vacancies in the state legislature through special elections. As of April 2022, 45 state legislative special elections have been scheduled nationwide for 2022 in 20 states. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) has not called for any legislative special elections this year. All Missouri House of Representatives districts will be up for regular election on Nov. 8.
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