Jonathan Shorman

News-Leader

On Sept. 11, Rep. Jeff Messenger voted against overriding the governor's veto of tax legislation. The decision now haunts the lawmaker — in the form of Loren Hunt.

Hunt, the owner of a trucking company in Bois D'Arc, is challenging Messenger, of Republic, for the 130th District House seat Republican nod. Hunt's decision to get into the race makes him the only candidate to challenge a sitting state lawmaker of the same party in the Springfield area.

Hunt describes himself as the conservative in the race. But Messenger says he has represented his district well.

The outcome of the August Republican primary will likely determine who becomes state representative because no other political parties fielded candidates.

"I hope I could be considered a staunchly reliable conservative, especially when it comes to fiscal issues," Hunt said.

The vote on House Bill 253 in 2013 illustrates the difference between Messenger and him, Hunt said. Messenger voted against overriding Gov. Jay Nixon's veto of the legislation, which contained an income tax cut.

"That (bill) was a step in the right direction, and it was a missed opportunity as far as I'm concerned," Hunt said.

Messenger stands by his vote. Democrats and some Republicans, such as Messenger, said there were problems in the bill. He said the supposed tax-cut bill contained a tax increase.

A provision in the bill would have eliminated a sales tax exemption on prescription drugs.

"It's obvious he doesn't know what House Bill 253 had in it," Messenger said.

This year Messenger voted for another income tax cut that was much simpler than House Bill 253. The bill passed and lawmakers successfully overrode Nixon's veto. Messenger suggested the reason he has an opponent in the primary is because he did not vote the way interest groups wanted him to vote on House Bill 253.

"I'm not a yes man for special interest groups and lobbyists," Messenger said. St. Louis billionaire Rex Sinquefield sunk hundreds of thousands of dollars into efforts to get House Bill 253 into law.

Hunt said Missouri is fortunate to have Republican majorities, but he said the state needs to return to its conservative roots or it will be overwhelmed by liberalism.

"We have to hold the line and we have for too many years as conservatives allowed ourselves to be pacifists and allowed that creep toward liberalism," Hunt said.

Hunt first ran for state representative in 2012, a decision he attributed to an epiphany that he needed to do something bold that would at least in a small way help redirect the country back toward the conservatism that he says it was founded on.

The first time around, Hunt said he was outspent and lacked name recognition. That seems to be changing. Last week, the Missouri Club for Growth PAC endorsed Hunt over Messenger.

Then, on Tuesday, the Sinquefield-funded group gave $25,000 to Hunt. Hunt acknowledged he needs PACs to support him.

Messenger, a freshman completing his first term, said voting him out of office would kill the progress he has made on his legislative projects, which includes transforming Medicaid.

Messenger has been working with Rep. Lynn Morris, R-Nixa, on crafting a plan that they say aims to reform the way Medicaid funds are spent. The savings could in turn then potentially be used to expand Medicaid. Morris has previously indicated a tentative proposal could be unveiled this summer.

"I've represented my district well," Messenger said. "I think the voters realize that and I fully anticipate I'll be re-elected based on that."