State Sen. Karla May, (D-St. Louis) is vying to replace Josh Hawley as a U.S. Senator representing Missouri.
May, 48, announced her candidacy last week on July 9 joining St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell in the lineup of Democrats seeking to unseat Hawley.
“They're going to fail,” said Rene Artman, chair of the Republican Central Committee of St. Louis County. “Josh Hawley has been doing a great job. I don't know why Wesley Bell would want to run. He doesn't even prosecute criminals in St. Louis County.”
May, who represents parts of St. Louis County and City, has worked in politics in Jefferson City for more than a decade. Initially, she was a lawmaker in the Missouri House. May subsequently won a high chamber position in 2018 in the legislative minority, according to media reports.
The career politician made a name for herself in the last legislative session when Gov. Mike Parson signed a bill that she sponsored. Senate Bill 34 allows charter and public schools to teach from the Hebrew Scriptures, the Old Testament of the Bible, and the New Testament of the Bible within social studies elective classes.
The bill requires that social studies courses comply with applicable laws that pertain to religious neutrality.
"The bill also makes it very clear that the course must maintain religious neutrality, and shall not endorse, favor, promote or show hostility to any particular religion, non-religious faith or religious perspective," May previously told the News Tribune.
Other Democrats who have thrown their hats into the ring are December Harmon and Lucas Kunce.
Harmon is a self-described radical liberal while Kunce has garnered an endorsement from the Missouri labor union AFL-CIO.
Democrat voters will decide between the four candidates on Aug. 6, 2024.
"It's gonna be tough," Artman said in an interview.
Although May has conservative leanings, the St. Louis GOP will continue to support Hawley, according to Artman.
“Hawley has done a good job," she told the St. Louis Record. "He is one of the good guys up there. He's representing us well. He's looking out for our benefits and besides that, he's very intelligent, very smart, and I trust him totally.”
Artman foresees civil liberties and the border capturing the political discourse as the 2024 election nears.
"Let's worry about Americans first," she added. "Let's get the borders closed because if we don't have borders, we don't have a country."