Chappell leads tight race for Missouri House District 137 in eastern Greene County
With a margin of just 115 votes, Darin Chappell appears to have won the Republican nomination for a state House seat representing east Greene County on Tuesday night.
Chappell, a former Missouri State University lecturer on government and finance, has been city administrator for Chillicothe, Bolivar and Seymour.
The latest preliminary results from the Greene County Clerk showed Chappell defeating his primary opponent, Greene County Circuit Clerk Tom Barr, by a vote of 3,519 to 3,404, with 14 of 15 precincts reporting. It was not clear how many votes were uncounted; the Missouri Secretary of State's office reported the race with 14 of 15 precincts reporting.
Greene County Clerk Shane Schoeller told the News-Leader Wednesday morning that the 15th precinct represents the federal precinct — military and overseas voters — and any provisional ballots. The federal precinct has until Friday at noon to file all of its votes. Schoeller said the Greene County Clerk's Office will begin counting provisional ballots today.
As for a potential recount, Schoeller said the marginal difference between Chappell and Barr is too large. There must be less than half of 1% difference between candidates to constitute a recount. As of Wednesday morning, the difference is 1.66%.
With no Democratic opponent to face in November, Chappell will head to Jefferson City in January to represent a portion of the county that includes Fair Grove, Strafford and communities east of Springfield.
A ninth-generation resident of southwest Missouri, Chappell has also served as a minister for the Church of Christ and taught Bible classes. He focused on his knowledge of founding documents like the U.S. Constitution and experience with budgets and government in his pitch to voters.
He "never once had a budget in the red" and "never once advocated for a tax increase" in his positions, he said, sentiments he said he'd bring to Jefferson City. Chappell originally filed to run in a Springfield-area House seat but switched to the new east Greene County district after an adjusted map according to new Census data was released.
State House race: Circuit clerk Barr, city official Chappell run for east Greene County seat
Chappell is an advocate against abortion and gun control measures, and has cautioned against expanding the social safety not "for those who could fend for themselves but for whatever reason have chosen to" — referencing voter-approved Medicaid expansion.
He's also in favor of raising the threshold for voter-sponsored ballot initiatives, and supports charter schools and other educational options outside of public schools. Among his personal priorities are addressing infrastructure issues, specifically with highways that he says are "falling apart at the seams."
Barr, who currently serves as clerk for the Greene County Circuit Court, is a New York native, 30-year Greene County resident and founder of Ozark Mailing Service. He ran a campaign focused on "streamlining" governmental services and accessibility. During his tenure as clerk, the court redesigned its website, revamped the traffic ticket hearing system and improved its online operating capabilities.
News-Leader reporter Greta Cross contributed to this story.
Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Darin Chappell leads Republican primary for House District 137
