The new legislative session begins with the election of the Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives.

The race to the dais was a campaign that started more than a year ago. The Republican party selected their candidate to be the party’s nominee for Speaker in the fall of 2023. Representative Jon Patterson was elected by secret ballot. Only the Republican members participated in the process to select a Party nominee.

At the beginning of this session the Republican nominee, Rep Jon Patterson, will be challenged by the Minority Party’s candidate and others. The chair of the opening session will receive nominations. Votes will be cast by the entire House membership. The votes will be displayed and printed in the House journal. Rep. Jon Patterson is the favorite to win.

There have been some distractions in the election process this year but from my perspective, the story isn’t about the candidates, it is about the representatives that cast their vote. This year, like most years, we have a large freshman class. When we begin this 103rd legislative session the members of the freshman class will represent over one third of the entire legislative body.

These freshmen were just elected in November.

They have never had a chance to work with or build a relationship with any of the candidates. Because of term limits, the process to choose the Speaker of the House rest largely in the hands of a disproportionally large freshman class.

A proposed House Joint Resolution, HJR 15, changes this a bit. Currently a new member of the legislature can serve 8 years in the House and 8 years in the Senate for a total of 16 years. If HJR 15 were approved by Missouri voters, a member of the legislature could serve the same total of 16 years, but in any combination in the House or Senate. This option would reduce the size of each freshmen class.  More members with the experience and a relationship with their peers would cast their vote for Speaker. HJR15 will have to make it through the legislative process before it gets to the ballot.

This resolution also limits the number of years any future Speaker may remain in power. There will also be a substantial shift of bureaucratic influences, returning control of the state government back to the people’s representative.

Thanks for taking an interest in our state government. I’d like to hear from you and your view on this new resolution. You can email me at bruce.sassmann@house.mo.gov or call my legislative assistant, Jill Ryals, at 573-751-6668. I appreciate your help.