By Don Bradley
Missouri’s 56th House district, which takes in most of Belton and Raymore, will pit Republican Steve Baker, who served 30 years in the Marine Corps, against Democrat Staci Czar in the general election. Incumbent Michael Davis lost his seat in the August primary after three terms, setting up new representation for the area.
Steve Baker, Republican
Baker also started young. He joined the Marine Corps at 17 and stayed in 30 years with deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He retired as a master gunnery sergeant. He is a graduate of American Military University.
After his final posting at Fort Leonard Wood, he and his family moved to Raymore and he took a job working with veterans for the state of Missouri.
He and his wife homeschooled their children and he lists “educational freedom” as a top concern for the General Assembly as he seeks political office. He says parents should have the right to choose their children’s schooling, whether it be public, private or homeschooling.
He opposes abortion rights.
“Every human life is valuable and worthy of protection, from protection until death,” he said in a questionnaire.
He is also a strong advocate of the Second Amendment which protects the right to bear arms.
Staci Czar, Democrat
As she was raising her children, she fought the pull to jump into politics.
Now, they’re grown and she is ready to seek her first elective office.
“I wanted to do it so many times but now the time is right,” said Czar, who works as a shipping manager for an online auction house.
She thinks the mood of the country could change not only Washington but also the small towns and rural areas where Democrats have not fared well in recent years.
“I want people in Jefferson City who will work for the people and not just a MAGA agenda,” she said.
She opposes the “Save Act” saying it is a clear example of voter suppression by demanding documents that some people don’t have or can’t find.
“Passports are very expensive,” she said. “Getting original birth certificates are hard, having to jump through hoops is too much to get to vote for our democracy.”
She also opposed the recent redistricting, saying all it was intended to do was to make it harder for Democrats, or any other party other than Republicans to get elected.
She opposes school vouchers, which would allow parents to use public dollars to enroll their kids in private schools or even homeschool.
“I’m also going to fight to keep our public school systems funded,” she said. “School vouchers, homeschool grants, and school of choice need to be overturned.”
She also wants the state to act on improvements to Interstate 49 south of Missouri 58.
(Story reprinted from July 16 primary election issue.)
