The village of Innsbrook hosted regional and statewide election candidates for a town hall meeting with local voters at the Aspen Center July 16.

Missouri’s primary election is Aug. 7. It will decide which candidate from each party moves on to the general election in November.

The Record previously delved into what candidates for local offices had to say. Below are the remaining speakers, who are running for U.S. senator, U.S. House representative and Missouri auditor.

Supporters and opponents of Proposition A, aka “Right-to-Work,” also had a chance to speak at the event.

Each speaker was given five minutes to address to those in attendance. 

U.S. senator

Two candidates competing for the Republican nomination for a seat in the U.S. Senate spoke at the event. There are a total of 11 Republicans running for that office. 

The winner of this election will likely go on to face incumbent Sen. Claire McCaskill in November, however there are other Democrats in the primary.

Ken Patterson said he is a retired military veteran who served in France.

“I think I’m qualified to be your senator, but that’s determined by you,” Patterson said.

He was followed by Courtland Sykes, a former Navy intelligence officer who said he worked for President Donald Trump’s National Security Council transition team.

Sykes said he opposes DACA and wants a three-year halt to all immigration.

“And when it comes to the southern border, we do need a wall,” Sykes said. “I will be the president’s champion on Capitol Hill.”

Also speaking was one of McCaskill’s six challengers in the Democratic primaries, Leonard J. Steinman II. He is a disabled military veteran, who said he has experienced difficulty with government veterans programs.

“My backbone is tough,” Steinman said. “If you didn’t know how tough it is, I’ve had 12 heart attacks. ... They don’t know what to do with me when I go to the VA hospital. They shake their heads and say, ‘Don’t mess with him, he’s the toughest guy who walks in this building.’ ”

U.S. House representative, District 3

One Republican candidate is challenging incumbent Blaine Luetkemeyer for his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The challenger, Chadwick Bicknell, was present to speak. He said Luetkemeyer has been a poor representative and is voting against the will of the people.

“I will actually do what you, the people, want,” Bicknell said. “I intend to help our president, help whoever the next senator is for our great state, help make America great again, as our president has promised to do.”

Bicknell vowed to repeal the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, support a southern border wall, and increase infrastructure funding to Missouri.

The Republican nominee for the House seat will go on to race against Democrat Katy Geppert, who is running unopposed in her party.

Missouri auditor

Four people are running in the Republican race to see who will challenge Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway in November. Galloway is unopposed for the Democratic nomination.

Two candidates were present at Innsbrook to discuss their plans for the auditor’s office.

Candidate Kevin Roach said the state currently has only “the illusion of accountability” when it comes to finances, because the auditor’s office hasn’t been modernized for decades. He discussed the difficulty of accessing records compared to what it could be using technology.

“The first thing I want to do is I want to get all government budgets online, so that the people who pay for government can see how the money is being allocated,” Roach said.

Fellow candidate Saundra McDowell touted her experience prosecuting financial fraud for the Missouri Attorney General’s office.

“Over the time I worked for the state, I have brought back over $10 million in taxpayer funds,” McDowell said.

Prop A, aka “Right-to-Work”

Proposition A is a citizen-initiated referendum to decide whether a law passed by the Missouri Legislature last year will go into effect.

The “Right-to-Work” law states that employees cannot be forced to pay union dues or join a union as a condition of employment.

State Rep. Justin Hill, R-Lake St. Louis, spoke in favor of right-to-work. He said forcing workers to support unions against their will isn’t right, and that other right-to-work states have seen economic boosts and job growth after passing similar laws.

“Since 2008, four out of five jobs have been created in (right-to-work) states,” Hill said.

Two opponents of Prop A addressed the audience next, stating that the average wage for workers is $8,700 less in states that have right-to-work laws.

Glenn Kage, president of the United Auto Workers union in Wentville, said the reason unionized businesses require dues of all employees is because the union represents all employees during collective bargaining.

“When somebody makes a choice to go work for a company that has a union, they are free to choose that,” Kage said. “They do so because we have better wages, we have better benefits. They do so knowing that part of that deal is going to be paying union dues.”

Mark Dalton, a carpenters union representative, added that his union pays large amounts of money to train new carpenters, contributing to economic development. That money comes from union dues, rather than tax dollars spent on other economic development projects, he said.