Republican Rob Vescovo faces a challenge as he seeks a third two-year term in the Nov. 6 election representing District 112 in the Missouri House of Representatives.
Democrat Benjamin Hagin, an auto damage appraiser from Barnhart, is seeking to turn out Vescovo, an Arnold resident who works in business development.
District 112 covers portions of north and central Jefferson County.
State senators and representatives receive a $35,915 annual salary plus mileage and $115 per day in expenses for each day the General Assembly is in session.
VESCOVO, 41, lives at 2731 Riebold Drive, in Arnold. He and his wife, Amanda, have five children. He attended Southeast Missouri State University, where he studied public relations. He is the committee chairman of Cub Scout Troop 830, where he has also been assistant Cubmaster. He was a member of the Jefferson County Port Authority’s board from 2011-2015.
Social media: Website: RobVescovo.com
HAGIN, 39, lives at 3742 Sierra Drive, Barnhart. He and his wife, Tara, have two children. He is a physical auto damage appraiser for the Multinational Insurance Co. A 1997 graduate of Webster Groves High School, he has a certificate in automotive collision repair from Rankin Technical College. He has been the head of the Briarwood road committee since 2017.
Social media: Website: haginformissouri.com
What are your thoughts on how to protect insurance coverage for Missourians who have pre-existing conditions?
Vescovo: When it comes to health care, I oppose putting government bureaucrats between families and their doctors. But as someone with brachial plexus, a pre-existing condition, who has been denied coverage in the past, I do support common-sense measures at either the state or federal level that protect insurance coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.
Hagin: We can expand Medicare in Missouri to help protect the most vulnerable people of our state. We are leaving millions of dollars in federal funds that we pay in on the table to expand these services to cover more people. I would vote against any and all attempts to cut coverage for pre-existing conditions.
Missourians voted overwhelmingly against a “right to work” amendment in the August election. Legislative leaders have said they may introduce a similar bill next year. If “right to work” comes up during your term, how will you vote and why?
Vescovo: Now that the voters have spoken, we must look forward instead of backward and find new strategies to attract the kind of good-paying, family supporting jobs our county so desperately needs. We must make our business climate more attractive for employers to locate here and to bring good jobs here, and we need to train our workforce to prepare for those jobs and the jobs of the future.
Hagin: I volunteered a lot of my personal time out across Missouri collecting signatures, and later on canvassing, to stop “right to work.” I will stand with the people of Missouri. They have spoken on this issue.
Will you vote for or against Proposition D, the transportation tax on the November ballot? Why?
Vescovo: I opposed the transportation tax in the legislature and will oppose it in November because I am not convinced that Jefferson County will get back all of the new tax money our residents would pay in. I will support a transportation plan that makes and modernizes our highways, makes our roads and bridges safer and reduces traffic congestion. But we have to be sure that we get back the money we pay in with new construction and jobs.
Hagin: I will vote no on Proposition D although we have one of the lowest gas taxes in the nation. Fuel taxes should be solely used for roads and bridges in Missouri. And special tax breaks should not be inserted into such a ballot measure.
If the U.S. Supreme Court rules that Roe v. Wade is a state matter, what would you advocate for?
Vescovo: I was adopted as a child, so the pro-life issue is one that is deeply personal to me. I am 100 percent pro-life and am endorsed by Missouri Right to Life. If the abortion issue is returned from the courts to the states to determine, I will continue to vote to protect innocent life.
Hagin: I would vote for any bill that came across my desk that either tightened, loosened or outright banned abortion rights so long as it went to a vote of the people. I do not believe that something so polarizing should be decided by a couple of hundred people in the Legislature.
Why should voters elect you to this position? List your goals, if elected.
Vescovo: My top goal is to work tirelessly to attract more and better jobs to Jefferson County. Jobs that keep our young people here rather than moving to other states to find work. My other goals are making sure your tax dollars are spent wisely and not wasted, supporting and improving our education system, and making health care more affordable and less bureaucratic. Too often, common sense is lacking when it comes to government, both in Washington, D.C., and in Jefferson City, and I want to bring people together to solve problems and improve our communities.
Hagin: I will listen to the people, engage the people and stay connected. I will not be beholden to special interests in Jefferson City. The only people I will be beholden to are the people of my district.