COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Two more people have announced their intent to run for spots on the Jefferson City Board of Education. Ryan Towner and Gretchen Duckworth both announced their campaigns in Thursday press releases. Trent Vallandingham and Michelle Rodemeyer announced their bids earlier this week. Three seats on the board are up for election. Candidates can begin
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) State Rep. Jeff Vernetti (R-Camdenton) announced his reelection bid in the Missouri House of Representatives in a Wednesday press release. Vernetti first won his seat last year. State representatives serve two-year terms. The release says focuses of his campaign include “accessibility and constituent service.” He owns LOZ Sports Training and Vernetti’s Italian
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Trent Vallandingham announced his bid for the Jefferson City Board of Education in a Wednesday press release. Vallandingham is the second person this week to announce their candidacy. Michelle Rodemeyer announced her bid earlier this week. Three seats on the board are up for election. Candidates can begin filing across the state
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Michelle Rodemeyer announced in a Monday evening press release that she will be running for a spot on the Jefferson City Board of Education. The release says she is a certified public accountant at Estes and Associates and previously worked at the Missouri State Public Health laboratory as a budget and fiscal
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) State Rep. John Martin (R-Centralia) announced that he plans on running for reelection. Martin announced his bid in a Monday afternoon press release. He represents Missouri’s 44th District in the state house and was first elected last year. “My Christian faith and blue collar background drive me to lead with integrity,” Martin
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Three incumbents on the Columbia Board of Education will seek reelection, according to a joint press release sent by the members on Wednesday. The release says Board President John Lyman, Vice President Paul Harper and Board Member April Ferrao will file for reelection next month. Filing for the positions will be open
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Jefferson City council member said he plans to run for Cole County’s top election official next year. Jeff Ahlers filed paperwork on Nov. 3 with the Missouri Ethics Commission to run for Cole County Clerk in 2026. Ahlers said he plans to run for the Republican nomination in August’s primary to
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) Jefferson City residents voted Tuesday on whether the city’s lodging tax will be extended an additional 25 years. Voters approved the measure with 53.9% of the vote. There was a 15.61% voter turnout this election. There were 4,397 total votes cast, with 2,371 in favor and 2,026 against. The lodging tax
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Hallsville voters approved a number of measures on Tuesday. There was a 25% voter turnout for this election, according to information from the county clerk’s office. Voters overwhelmingly approved to stay with the four-day school week students have been doing the past few years. “Yes” took home 75% of the vote. Voters
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A November ballot in an odd-numbered year is usually pretty thin. But this year, if you live in Hallsville, you have the chance to decide on three big questions: The first is whether the Hallsville School District should continue its four-day week for another 10 years. The district has used the abbreviated
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EDITOR’S NOTE: AI was used to help research the background for this story. JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) The Jefferson City Lodging Association has filed a lawsuit against Jefferson City, the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce and the Jefferson City Convention and Visitors Bureau, claiming the city’s 7% lodging tax violates Missouri law. Jefferson City
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Tuesday is the first day potential candidates for the Columbia City Council elections can file to run and voters should expect to see some familiar names. Ward 1 Councilwoman Valerie Carroll announced on her social media that she filed for her reelection bid on Monday. Ward 5 Councilman Don Waterman told ABC
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Missouri state Sen. Mike Bernskoetter (R-Cole County) announced Thursday on his social media that he plans to run for presiding commissioner in Cole County. Bernskoetter has served the sixth district in the Missouri senate since 2019, which is made up of Cole, Camden, Miller, Moniteau and Morgan counties. He will reach the
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Two Columbia-based attorneys are preparing to run for a Boone County judge set in 2026. Bill Ellis and James Egan have both announced campaigns for the Division 9 associate circuit judgeship in Boone County. Ellis plans to run as a Democrat and Egan plans to campaign as a Republican. The two are
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Election packets for this upcoming April’s City Council elections in Columbia are available for pickup and filing begins on Tuesday, Oct. 28, according to a Wednesday press release from the city. Races will be held for the Wards 1 and 5 council seats currently held by Valerie Carroll and Donald Waterman, respectively.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) James Egan in a Wednesday press release announced his campaign to become the Division 9 associate circuit judge in Boone County. The release says Egan is a Columbia resident who has spent more than three decades in public service. He first worked as an educator with “at-risk youth” before working as
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HALLSVILLE, Mo. (KMIZ) A crowd of more than 60 community members, teachers and staff gathered Tuesday night in the Hallsville Secondary Cafeteria as district leaders outlined plans for Proposition 2 and the proposed continuation of the four-day school week on the Nov. 4 ballot. Superintendent Tyler Walker said the district’s goal is to ensure residents
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Attorney Spencer Smith in a Thursday press release announced his candidacy for the Division 9 Boone County Circuit associate judge role. The release says Smith graduated from Washburn University School of Law in 2017 and worked as the deputy district attorney in Josephine County in Oregon until he became a public defender
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Cole County judge has approved the ballot language for a summary of a constitutional amendment that would limit abortion access across the state. Judge Daniel Green had twice refused Secretary of State Denny Hoskins’ attempt to write the language for Amendment 3. The most recent rejection occurred on Oct. 1 and
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Boone County Associate Circuit Judge Tracy Gonzalez will not seek reelection in 2026, according to a press release from the 13th Judicial Circuit. Gonzalez has served in the role since Jan. 1, 2019, and her term ends on Dec. 31, 2026. She has focused mostly on juvenile and family matters. She plans
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