Mike Kehoe, Crystal Quade agree to Missouri gubernatorial debate on policy

Both nominees in the Missouri governor's race spoke to reporters separately following the governor's ham breakfast at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia Thursday morning, giving hints at what a debate may look like between the two (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent).

SEDALIA — Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Kehoe and Democrat Crystal Quade agreed Thursday to a debate next month hosted by the Missouri Press Association.

Kehoe did not participate in several Republican debates in the run up to the Aug. 6 primary. News stations have offered to moderate a Kehoe-Quade debate, but a date has not yet been set  — though Kehoe said both parties were “interested.”

Both gubernatorial candidates spoke briefly to reporters following the annual governor’s ham breakfast at the Missouri State Fair Thursday morning, an event packed with elected officials and candidates for office up and down the ballot.

They promised a debate on the issues, rather than name-calling and performance.

“I am excited to have a conversation about policy differences and trying to get away from the flamethrowers and ridiculousness that we saw in the primary,” Quade said.

Kehoe said Quade’s viewpoints are “100% different” than his, but he expects the race to  remain cordial.

“We are old fashioned in that we can disagree and still have a relationship with each other,” he said.

Quade also emphasized their differences Thursday, saying that although other candidates in the Republican primary appeared “extreme,” she believes Kehoe would ultimately govern similarly.

“While folks may say that one (Republican candidate) is more moderate than the other, the reality is Lt. Gov. Kehoe would sign the same pieces of legislation that the extremists in Jefferson City would send him regardless,” she said.

Quade spoke about their differences in workers’ rights and labor law, noting that Kehoe advocated for Missouri’s right-to-work law in 2017 , prohibiting labor union membership from being a condition of employment.

There is a ballot initiative that seeks to raise the minimum wage and establish a mandatory minimum for paid sick leave, potentially bringing more hourly workers to the polls in November.

When asked about the ballot initiatives, Kehoe said he preferred for businesses to set wages. But overall, his priority was rejecting a second ballot initiative seeking to amend the state constitution to legalize abortion.

“We need to make sure that amendment goes down,” he said. “Protecting innocent life is one of our highest, if not the highest, priority.”

When the Missouri Secretary of State’s Office released the news that legalizing abortion would be on the November ballot, Quade issued a statement that condemned Kehoe’s anti-abortion stance and labeled him an “extremist.”

“Within 15 minutes of the fall of Roe, Missouri Republicans, led by extremists like Mike Kehoe, cheered as the rights of women all across Missouri were stripped away,” she said in a statement.

Missourians will vote for their next governor Nov. 5.

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX