Missouri Rep. Kimberly Gardner’s victory in the St. Louis primary for the city’s top prosecutor’s job means she will assume the office, becoming the first new person in the position in 16 years.
Gardner’s win on Tuesday against three other contenders for the City of St. Louis Circuit Attorney automatically places the Democrat in the position because no Republican filed to run for the spot in November, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
“I believe we worked together in the community to keep going forward despite hardships, but I felt good and I just put my head down and worked to win this election,” she said.
Garner, 41, will be lead of an office of more than 60 prosecutors and takes over for predecessor Jennifer Joyce who announced that she would not seek another term. She had been a prosecutor working under Joyce from 2005 to 2010 when she became a state representative.
She ran in the 2016 primary against two other assistant attorneys in the same office, Mary Pat Carl and Patrick Hamacher; and also St. Louis Public Schools attorney Steve Harmon. She soundly defeated them with 47 percent of the vote.
The Post Dispatch said that her campaign targeted voters who were frustrated by the divisions caused by the police shooting death of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Mo. She was endorsed by both Joyce and the St. Louis Police Officers Union.
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