Missouri:

Government, Politics, and Higher Education

In 1945, Missouri adopted a new state constitution that remains in effect. The governor is elected for a term of four years. The general assembly (legislature) has a senate with 34 members and a house of representatives with 163 members. The state sends eight representatives and two senators to the U.S. Congress and has 10 electoral votes in presidential elections. In 1992, Democrat Mel Carnahan was elected governor; he won reelection in 1996. After Gov. Carnahan died in a plane crash in Oct., 2000, Lt. Gov. Roger B. Wilson succeeded him. In November, Democrat Bob Holden was elected to the office. In 2004 Republican Matt Blunt won the governorship, but in 2008 and 2012 voters elected a Democrat, Jay Nixon. Republican Eric Greitens won the office in 2016, but resigned in 2018 in return for the dropping of a computer tampering charge. He was succeeded by Lt. Gov. Michael L. Parson, also a Republican.

Institutions of higher learning include the Univ. of Missouri, with campuses at Columbia, Kansas City, Rolla, and Saint Louis; Missouri State Univ., at Springfield; Saint Louis Univ., Washington Univ., and Webster Univ., at St. Louis; Rockhurst College, at Kansas City; and Westminster College, at Fulton.

Sections in this article:

Introduction
Facts and Figures
Geography
Economy
Government, Politics, and Higher Education
History
Bibliography

See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. Political Geography