Falkner makes 'unconventional' run for House speaker
Jul. 6—In 1820, James Caldwell of St. Genevieve became the first to pound the gavel as speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives.
Since then, 76 others have risen to the top leadership position in the House, including one representative from Andrew County and another from Daviess County. Bob Griffin of Cameron became the longest-tenured House speaker in state history during the 1980s and '90s.
Not one of them ever called Buchanan County home, but Bill Falkner wants to change that.
"I had somebody ask me, 'Aren't you afraid to lose?'" said Falkner, a state representative for District 10 in St. Joseph. "No one likes to lose, but I would be more upset with myself if I thought I could make a difference and I didn't try."
Falkner, first elected to the Missouri House in 2018, is trying to become its next speaker. The chamber's Republican caucus will vote on its next speaker nominee during the September veto session in Jefferson City. The full House will vote following the 2024 general election.
The current House Speaker, Rep. Dean Plocher of St. Louis, will maintain his post in the 2024 session but cannot seek reelection because of term limits. He has been mentioned as a possible candidate for lieutenant governor next year.
"I'm taking an unconventional route to run for speaker, but I really think that some of the things need to be changed," Falkner said.
The unconventional route stems from Falkner's lack of a leadership post in the House. Plocher served as majority floor leader when the GOP caucus selected him as speaker designee in 2021. Falkner is neither the majority floor leader nor the speaker pro tem, though he does chair the local government committee and sits on separate committees for utilities, elections and procedures.
Falkner, a small business owner and former two-term mayor in St. Joseph, said he tries to bring common sense and a problem-solving approach to the legislative process.
"I think that helps me work to bring people together because most of the time it's communications and just getting the right people in the room to sit down and discuss," he said. "Usually if a bill comes down and not everyone is happy with everything in it, that means it's a pretty decent bill."
St. Joseph would gain a measure of clout if Falkner was able to attain the speakership. Tama Wagner, who serves as Buchanan County coordinator for the regional lobbying effort called Great Northwest Day at the Capitol, believes the local delegation already proves effective on the area's behalf.
She points to funding for St. Joseph that was included in the final version of this year's state budget, including $19 million for Rosecrans Memorial Airport, $6 million for Hillyard Technical Center and $2.5 million for the Convergent Technology Alliance Center at Missouri Western State University.
"I don't know what it takes to become speaker," she said. "I do think Bill was a good mayor. He's effective in Jefferson City and hopefully his colleagues will see that. The time is right, maybe, to have one from Buchanan County."
Buchanan County hasn't gone without high-level leadership in the General Assembly. Charlie Shields served as president pro tem, the equivalent leadership position of the state Senate, in 2009 and 2010. Elijah Haahr, the House speaker in 2019 and 2020, represented a district in southwest Missouri but he has a local connection. Haahr, who is no longer in the legislature, received his bachelor's degree from Missouri Western.
Falkner said Rep. Jonathan Patterson, the majority floor leader in the House, could be in the mix in the race for speaker.
The campaign isn't like a run for public office, with fundraising, polling and attack ads for all to see. Much of it takes place behind closed doors, but Falkner said he likes his chances.
"I'm not seeking another office after this," he said. "We need to work for the betterment of Missouri as a whole instead of just what your next position is going to be."
Greg Kozol can be reached at greg.kozol@newspressnow.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NPNowKozol.
