Meet the Springfield and Greene County delegation to the 2023 Missouri legislature

Wondering who represents you at the Missouri State Capitol?

As the General Assembly returns to Jefferson City for its annual legislative session in 2023, it's important to know who to contact if you have questions, requests or want to weigh in on current issues or bills.

Not a Springfield or Greene County resident and want to find out who represents you? Easy — just use the Missouri House and Senate legislator lookup tools, which let you enter your address to find your lawmakers.

Here are Springfield and Greene County's delegation for the 2023 legislative session.

Springfield: Sen. Lincoln Hough

Party and district: Republican, Senate District 30. First elected in 2018, re-elected in 2022.

Bio: Prior to representing Springfield in the Senate, Hough served three terms in the House and two years as Greene County Commissioner. A cattle rancher and Missouri State University graduate, Hough will be one of the most influential members of the legislature as the chair of the Senate's budget committee. Much of his time and effort will be focused on that budget process, which takes months and allocates tens of billions of taxpayer dollars.

A conservative focused primarily on business and workforce issues, Hough has frequently touted the importance of bipartisan compromise, at times breaking with other members of his party and pushing back against those who have sought a more hardline right-wing style of legislating.

Office phone: 573-751-1311

Greene County: Sen. Curtis Trent

Party and district: Republican, Senate District 20. Elected in 2022.

Bio: Trent, an attorney who focuses on Social Security law, has previously served as deputy chief of staff to former U.S. Rep. Billy Long and served three terms in the House before being elected to the Senate in November.

He's been involved in various criminal justice issues during his time in the statehouse, including sponsoring a bill creating nurseries in state prisons, and has continued to propose bills this year relating to the justice system and prisons.

Office phone: 573-751-0136 (could change with move to Senate)

Republic and Greene County west of Springfield: Rep. Bishop Davidson

Party and district: Republican, House District 130. First elected in 2020.

Bio: Davidson is the owner and operator of Pelion Learning, an educational services company, and previously worked at a conservative nonprofit that operates on college campuses. Entering his second term, he has focused primarily on legislation aimed at professional licensing and changing the state's initiative petition process.

Office phone: 573-751-2381

West and north Greene County: Rep. Bill Owen

Party and district: Republican, House District 131. First elected in 2020.

Bio: Owen, a longtime banker, returned to the House in 2020 after one term in the 1980s, making this his third term total. He has focused on legislation creating land banks in Springfield and other Missouri communities, as well as financial and banking policy.

Office phone: 573-751-2948

Northwest Springfield: Rep. Crystal Quade

Party and district: Democrat, House District 132. First elected in 2016.

Bio: Entering her final term in the House and fourth year leading the Democratic caucus, Quade serves as one of the leading voices of her party in the state. A former nonprofit director, she has focused on funding public education, the social safety net and protecting voting and abortion rights in Missouri, while frequently criticizing legislative efforts from Republicans.

Office phone: 573-751-3795

West Springfield: Rep. Melanie Stinnett

Party and district: Republican, House District 133. Elected in 2022.

Bio: The founder of speech therapy business TheraCare, Stinnett won this open seat in November. She said she was inspired to run for office to support small businesses and children with disabilities, and has filed a bill early on to restore voting rights to those on parole or probation.

Office phone: 573-751-0136

Battlefield and south Greene County: Rep. Alex Riley

Party and district: Republican, House District 134. First elected in 2020.

Bio: Riley, a business attorney, has focused on budgetary and business issues heading into his second term. His priorities have included reforming tort litigation in Missouri and reducing regulations on small businesses.

Office phone: 573-751-2210

Northeast Springfield and MSU: Rep. Betsy Fogle

Party and district: Democrat, House District 135. First elected in 2020.

Bio: Fogle, a former public health worker, enters her second term in the House. She has focused on funding public education and improving access to child care and has advocated for Missouri to spend more money on the state's safety net and social services.

Office phone: 573-751-9809

Southwest Springfield: Rep. Stephanie Hein

Party and district: Democrat, House District 136. Elected in 2022.

Bio: Hein, who unseated Rep. Craig Fishel in November and flipped the seat's party control, is the emeritus hospitality management department head at Missouri State University. She said on the campaign trail she is focused on funding government services for Missourians, including health care, education and infrastructure.

Office phone: 573-751-0232

East Greene County: Rep. Darin Chappell

Party and district: Republican, House District 137. Elected in 2022.

Bio: Chappell, a longtime city administrator, minister and college instructor, was elected to fill this new seat in November. He has advocated for cautious and limited government spending.

Office phone: 573-751-3819

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: Springfield and Greene County lawmakers in 2023 Missouri legislature