One of the Senate seats Democrats hope to capture in November is the Missouri seat currently occupied by Jim Talent. He will face Democrat Claire McCaskill, state auditor and former Jackson County (Kansas City) prosecutor. Some of the issues in this race will be Supreme Court nominees, funding for stem-cell research, and the war in Iraq. For information on Talent, here is his page from the Library of Congress Thomas site. For information of McCaskill here is her campaign website.

As a Show-Me State native, let me explain a few things about Missouri politics. For decades the state was heavily Democrat. In the 70s a resurgence of the Republican party was led by Kit Bond and Jack Danforth, moderate Republicans. Some years ago the Religious Right took control of the state Republican party--think John Ashcroft (major blame or credit should go to Pat Roberson and his run for the Republican presidential nomination). The Democrats remain strong enough to prevent Missouri from becoming a safe Republican state. Democrat bases include the urban population of St. Louis and Kansas City, plus older citizens who still are instinctively Democrat, but will not vote for a candidate perceived to be "liberal." (There are Dems in Missouri who still pine for the days of Harry Truman/Scoop Jackson Democrats.)

For a thorough summary of this fall election, read Steve Kraske's article in the Kansas City Star newspaper. Link here.