Ed Callahan, a Jefferson County pastor, has announced plans to run for the District 112 seat in the Missouri House of Representatives, which Renee Reuter currently holds.
Reuter has announced plans to run for the District 22 state Senate seat in 2026. David Casteel, the state representative for District 97, and Jim Avery, a former state representative for District 95, are also running for the state Senate seat.
All three are running as Republicans. They are seeking to replace Mary Elizabeth Coleman, who was elected in 2022 and announced in March that she would not seek reelection.
Callahan, 61, of Imperial will seek the Republican nomination for the District 112 seat in the August primary. District 112 covers parts of unincorporated Arnold, Imperial and Barnhart.
Callahan is the senior pastor at Encounter Church in Arnold.
“I have a lot of leadership experience in a wide variety of fields,” he said. “I have never run for political office locally or statewide.
“For decades, I’ve served the people of this community as a pastor, a small business owner and a neighbor. I’ve seen firsthand the challenges Missourians face with rising costs, limited mental health resources and uncertainty about the future. I’m running to stand up for the people of Jefferson County, protect our shared values and ensure Missouri remains a place where opportunity and community thrive for generations to come.”
Callahan has a bachelor’s degree in music education from Southeast Missouri State University, a master’s degree of divinity from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary and a doctorate from Christian Brothers College, according to his campaign website, edformo.com.
He said he and his wife, Bitsi, own several rental properties in Jefferson County and St. Louis, and he co-founded Focus on Missions, a nonprofit agency that provides housing, medical aid and educational support in communities in the U.S. and Mexico. Callahan also is a board member for Co-Mission Ministries, which supports humanitarian and faith-based initiatives worldwide.
Callahan said he believes his educational background and experience owning rental property, helping to guide a church and working with various community organizations make him a good state representative candidate.
“I’ll bring the same commitment to service and accountability that I’ve lived by my entire life,” he said. “My focus will always be on listening to the people of Jefferson County, finding solutions that lower costs and improve opportunity and keeping government accountable to those it serves.”
Callahan, a Jefferson County native, said his long ties to the community will help him if he is elected.
“I know people in Jefferson County, and their needs,” he said.
Callahan said if he is elected, he would listen to residents and find ways to address their concerns.
“I think I am a really good listener, but it goes beyond listening. It is listening, consolidating that information and creating vision and strategies,” he said. “My gift is vision and strategy. We get things done and accomplished for the people around us all of the time.”
Callahan said his top three priorities as a state representative would be preserving family values, reducing the cost of living and expanding opportunities for people.
“I want to make life affordable again for all ages,” he said. “If it is a young single person or young married couple who want to get into an apartment or first home, it has been difficult. We want to step in and support those things.
“Then expanding opportunity throughout Jefferson County and the state of Missouri, which will help people of all ages to afford to live again by growing jobs and opportunities for all ages.”
Callahan said he and his wife have five children – Charity Briles and Champ, Chuck, Chase and Chelsea Callahan – and 10 grandchildren.
For more information, go to edformo.com or his campaign Facebook page, “Ed Callahan for State Representative.”
Candidate filings for the August 2026 primary election begin Feb. 24, 2026, and end March 31, 2026, according to the Jefferson County Election Authority Office.