Published October 24, 2026 at 4:00 AM CDT

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In an election year that many analysts are predicting will be strong for Democrats across the country, party leaders in Missouri are hoping to cash in, too.

Earlier this year, an analysis from Ballotpedia identified the state as “highly exposed” to breaking its long-running Republican supermajorities in the Missouri General Assembly.

Senate District 8, which includes much of Blue Springs, Lee’s Summit and other cities in eastern Jackson County, is one of the seats Democrats are targeting in their effort to break the supermajority. The seat is currently held by Republican Sen. Mike Cierpiot.

Outgoing Republican Speaker of the House Jon Patterson and Democratic Rep. Keri Ingle, who was elected to the Missouri House in 2018, are running in a competitive race to succeed him.

If elected, Ingle said she’d prioritize funding public education. Missouri faces a tough financial future. Budget deficits are expected, and Patterson told St. Louis Public Radio’s “Politically Speaking” he expected cuts from almost every area of the budget.

“Public education is a cornerstone of the American dream. It is something that every child should have access to, it’s what we pay for as taxpayers, it is their tools to rise out of poverty, to rise above, to achieve their goals in life,” Ingle told KCUR’s Up To Date.

She’d also center support for Medicaid funding, which is likely to see federal funding cuts as a result of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and vowed to uphold Missourians’ votes.

Ingle would likely represent a politically “purple” district if elected. She promised to collaborate across the political spectrum and wouldn’t hesitate to vote against her party if her constituents supported it.

Ingle said she listens harder to people who disagree with her.

“One of the problems with politics now is that we are so siloed,” Ingle said. “We are in bubbles where we only hear you know people that agree with us, and we don't grow from that. We don't grow from that experience, and it's part of the reason why politics has become what it is, which is not working for the people. And so I think it's incredibly important to listen to people that you disagree with, and don't listen in order to respond. Listen to understand where they're coming from.”

• Rep. Keri Ingle, D-Lee’s Summit