JEFFERSON CITY — A lawyer with no previous political experience has joined the race for a seat in the Missouri Senate representing a swath of the St. Louis area.
Democrat Chris Clark, an attorney at the Thompson Coburn law firm, said in an announcement Monday that he will focus on rising housing, food and childcare costs and pledged to oppose Republican efforts to limit access to abortion.
Clark is part of a growing field of candidates running in the 4th Senate District currently held by Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis. She is term-limited and leaving office next year.
The primary election in the heavily Democratic district is Aug. 4.
Current state Rep. Steve Butz, D-St. Louis, and former state Rep. Gina Mitten, D-Richmond Heights, already are running for the post. Rep. LaKeySha Bosley, D-St. Louis, also has been named as a possible candidate.
The 4th District takes in parts of the city’s southwest corner, stretching from Tower Grove Park west and from areas around Forest Park south. It encompasses all of Clayton, Brentwood, Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Rock Hill and Warson Woods.
In his announcement, Clark said abortion rights would be a top priority, setting himself apart from Butz, who has described himself as “pro-life.” Mitten, who served in the House from 2013 to 2021, also supports abortion rights.
“The right to make personal medical decisions should always remain with individuals and their doctors,” Clark said.
He pledged to seek out solutions to high housing costs. After his family’s home was severely damaged in the May 16 tornado, he said prices for new homes came as a shock.
“We’re privileged to have been able to land on our feet after the tornado, but costs of recovery, both in terms of time and money, are extreme and place an even greater burden on families already struggling to make ends meet,” Clark said.
Clark is a former homicide prosecutor in the St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office. He also spent two years as a federal law clerk.
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Kurt Erickson | Post-Dispatch
Jefferson City reporter
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