Longtime conservative radio host Chris Stigall cruised to victory in the open race for Missouri’s 6th Congressional District, succeeding retiring U.S. Representative Sam Graves.
With an estimated 35.2 percent of votes counted, early returns showed Stigall with 53,085 votes, or approximately 52.3 percent and Democrat Josh Smead with 46,179 votes, good for approximately 45.5 percent, for a margin of about 6.8 percentage points. Libertarian Andy Maidment was also on the ballot.
Earlier, more limited precinct reports from individual counties, such as those in the Jefferson City News Tribune’s initial tallies of a few precincts, showed Stigall leading by a wider margin in the low 60s. County-level reporting from areas like Lincoln County similarly reflected Stigall ahead in the mid-60s percent range in incomplete returns.
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RACE CALL: Chris Stigall (R) wins MO-06 pic.twitter.com/y1zbOFMcEd
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Missouri’s Secretary of State Election Night Reporting system was posting unofficial results as counties transmitted data, with updates continuing after polls closed at 7 p.m. local time. Full district totals remained incomplete as of early evening, consistent with the staggered reporting typical of larger districts that span rural and suburban areas.
Final certification will follow the completion of all county canvasses.
Stigall, a longtime conservative talk radio host, is a native of Richmond in Ray County, Missouri. He earned a degree in broadcasting from Northwest Missouri State University, worked briefly as a field representative and deputy communications director in Graves’ office, and built a career in talk radio.
Stigall’s radio career has included stints in the Kansas City market, a period in Philadelphia, and a return to northwest Missouri. He later hosted a nationally syndicated morning program on the Salem Radio Network before leaving the role to pursue the congressional seat.
Graves endorsed Stigall shortly after announcing his retirement in March of this year, describing the decision as passing the torch after more than two decades in office. Stigall went on to secure the Republican nomination in the August 4 primary, when he secured about 44 percent of the vote in a five-candidate field.
Missouri’s 6th Congressional District covers a large portion of northern Missouri, stretching from the Kansas border to the Illinois border. It encompasses all or parts of roughly three dozen counties, with major population centers in the northern Kansas City metropolitan area and the city of St. Joseph in Buchanan County. Much of the district consists of rural agricultural counties across north-central and northeastern Missouri, including communities such as Maryville, Kirksville, Hannibal, and Troy.
In the general election, Stigall faced Democrat Josh Smead, an architect and small-business owner from Liberty, along with Libertarian Andy Maidment and Independent Kimberly Niffen.
