10
Loading video...
By Andrew Stanton
Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Senator Josh Hawley is up for reelection this year in Missouri, and some Democrats hope they will secure a victory in the traditionally conservative state.
Democrats appear likely to nominate Lucas Kunce, a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, to face off against Hawley in November, although the primary will not be held until August 6. Kunce has received the backing of many high-profile Democrats in the state and has a fundraising advantage over lesser-known candidates running in the primary.
Hawley has emerged as a lightning rod for Democratic criticism due to his staunchly conservative policy positions on issues like abortion and foreign policy, as well as his actions surrounding the 2020 presidential election. He was among the Republican senators who objected to the 2020 election results in key swing states, backing former President Donald Trump's unproven claims of widespread election fraud.
Read More
Russian Lawmaker Offers Donald Trump Advice3 min read
Ex-RNC Chair Confronts Republican on Project 2025 Plan to Gut Government5 min read
Christian Pastor Arrested on Child Porn Charges in Florida3 min read
Still, polls suggest Hawley is favored to win reelection against Kunce in Missouri, a state that has trended toward Republicans over the last few decades.
Emerson College released a new poll on Friday that found Hawley leading Kunce by 9 points.
The poll, which surveyed 1,000 Missouri voters from June 17 to 19, found that 47 percent of respondents were planning to back Hawley, while 38 percent said they would vote for Kunce in November. The poll's margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.
...
An additional 5 percent said they would vote for someone else, while 10 percent said they were unsure how they would vote, according to the poll.
Elizabeth Sena, a partner at the Kunce campaign's pollster GQR, wrote in a statement to Newsweek that abortion, a key priority for Democrats, is a "more important issue to voters in Missouri than anywhere else in the country."
"Lucas Kunce is starting to close the gap already, and soon, on TV, online, and at the doors, Missourians will learn Josh Hawley has the worst record on reproductive freedom of any elected official in the entire country," the statement reads.
Newsweek also reached out to Hawley campaign for comment via email.
Other recent polls have also shown Hawley with a lead over Kunce.
A Remington Research Group poll conducted among 713 likely voters from March 6 to 8 found Hawley leading by 14 points. According to polling data from FiveThirtyEight, 53 percent of respondents said they would vote for Hawley, while 39 percent said they would back Kunce.
A separate Emerson College poll conducted earlier this year found Hawley winning 43 percent and Kunce winning 30 percent. That poll was conducted among 1,830 registered voters from January 23 to 28.
Missouri used to be viewed as a bellwether state, backing every winning presidential candidate for most of the 20th century. But Democrats haven't won it at the presidential level since 1996.
Former President Barack Obama nearly carried it in his 2008 run, but the state has drifted toward Republicans in elections since. Former President Donald Trump easily won Missouri in his two presidential campaigns by about 15 points.
Although it remains solidly Republican at the presidential level, Democrats still managed to find success in other races throughout the 2000s and 2010s.
In fact, Hawley's seat was represented by Democrat Claire McCaskill until he flipped the seat in 2018. At the time, Missouri's Senate race was among the most competitive that year, but Hawley ultimately prevailed, winning by just under 6 percentage points.
Kunce previously ran for Senate in 2022 but lost the Democratic primary.
Update 6/21/2024 1:28 p.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Sena.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines