By Mike Pound

mpound@joplinglobe.com

The race for Missouri lieutenant governor is being hotly contested in the Aug. 5 primaries.

On the Republican ticket, incumbent Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder is being challenged for the nomination by two candidates. Six Democrats are seeking the nod to meet the GOP nominee in November. One Libertarian also will be on the November ballot.

Republicans

Kinder, after Gov. Matt Blunt announced he would not seek a second term, toyed with the idea of running for the Republican nomination for the state’s top spot, but ultimately opted to seek a second term as lieutenant governor.

Kinder, who was elected to the office of lieutenant governor on Nov. 2, 2004, was born and raised in Cape Girardeau, and attended both Southeastern Missouri State University and the University of Missouri. He graduated in 1979 from St. Mary’s University School of Law.

Kinder was elected in 1992 to the Missouri Senate, where he served until 2004.

Kinder expects that the primary election will be a referendum on how he has conducted myself in the office in the past four years.

“I am someone who takes the job very seriously as I try not to take myself too seriously,” Kinder said.

Kinder said he is particularly proud of the things his office has done to advance issues important to Missouri senior citizens. Kinder cited work to secure increased funding for meal programs for senior citizens.

Kinder said his office worked to help get a “multimillion-dollar increase” in the meals program for the fiscal year 2007-08 and an additional $500,000 boost in the 2008-09 fiscal year, which took effect on July 1.

Paul Douglas Sims is also seeking the Republican nod for lieutenant governor. Sims, 49, was born in Festus and now lives in Lecoma. He is a former firefighter and currently a rancher. This is his first run for public office.

Sims said the lieutenant governor sits on 13 state committees, giving the office an opportunity to influence a number of state agencies and projects.

Sims said, if elected, he would work to increase the resources to boost early childhood development. Sims said it is vital to provide strong support to children just entering school.

“We need to have the most motivated teachers for students right when the child starts school,” Sims said.

Arthur Hodge Sr. is the third candidate for the Republican nomination.

Hodge grew up in Kansas City and has lived in Springfield since 1987. He retired from the U.S. Army after serving 21 years and then worked for the Springfield public school system. He said he has about two years of college.

Hodge said leadership skills he honed during his military career are some of his strongest qualifications for the office of lieutenant governor.

Hodge said one of the important issues facing the state, and the nation, is the “blight of young blacks in America.”

Hodge said too many young people are falling through the cracks, and not receiving the attention and guidance they need.

Democrats

On the Democratic side there are six candidates seeking their party’s nomination for lieutenant governor.

They are state Rep. Sam Page; Michael E. Carter; Richard Charles Tolbert; Becky Plattner; Mary Williams and C. Lillian Metzger.

Page, 42, was raised in Van Buren and now lives in St. Louis. He is a physician, and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri at Kansas City, and graduated in 1992 from the UMKC Medical School. Page served two terms on the Creve Coeur City Council and is in his third term in the Missouri House, representing the 82nd District and is also a practicing physician.

Page cites his governmental experience as a member of the Creve Coeur City Council and as a member of the state Legislature as well has his medical background as qualifications for the office of lieutenant governor.

One of the most important roles the lieutenant governor can play, Page said, is as an advocate for senior citizens.

Page also said he would work to reduce the burden of rising medical costs of Missouri residents.

As a member of the Legislature, Page said he would be better equipped to handle the lieutenant governor’s role as president of the state Senate.

Carter, 36, is a senior lecturer at the University of Missouri at St. Louis and an attorney practicing in St. Charles. He has worked in the Missouri attorney general’s office and for the Western District Court of Appeals. Carter has twice run unsuccessfully for circuit judge in St. Charles County.

He has drawn some criticism for his practice of placing automated phone calls — known as robo calls — advocating his candidacy. Carter acknowledges the criticism but candidly admits he sees the call as a way to win a race for what he calls an “obscure office.”

Carter, who also runs a time and temperature phone service, said his business allows him to place the robo calls at little expense.

“It dawned on me I could win the election from a laptop in my closet,” he said. “With the robo calls maybe I could accidentally slip into office.”

Carter said his real-estate experience would be an asset as the lieutenant governor sits on the Missouri Housing and Development commission.

Tolbert, 63, is a native of the Kansas City area. He graduated from Yale University and is self-employed. He served on the Kansas City Council from 1971 through 1972, and is currently an elected member of the Metropolitan Community College Board of Trustees. Tolbert also ran for the U.S. Senate in 1992.

Tolbert said he sees the lieutenant governor’s office as a “bully pulpit” to address a number of issues statewide.

“I would devout time to issues that are important but aren’t getting enough attention like health care, and on little issues like making sure we get highway reflectors on markers across the state,” he said.

Plattner, Williams and Metzger could not be reached for comment for this story.

Teddy Flick, 46, an over-the-road truck driver, is unopposed for the Libertarian nomination for lieutenant governor.

The annual salary for the Missouri lieutenant governor is $84,000.