This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, May 09, 2011 - St. Louis lawyer Ed Martin announced this morning that he's dropping his U.S. Senate bid and running instead for the 2nd District congressional district -- a move that's not unexpected.
At a press conference at McArthur's Bakery in south St. Louis County, Martin said that the ideological similarities between himself and the 2nd District's current congressman -- U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, R-Town and Country -- are among the reasons why he decided to change electoral contests. Akin is expected to announce a bid for the U.S. Senate later this month.
"When I got in the Senate race, I spoke to Ann Wagner, I spoke to Sarah Steelman, I spoke to lots of people about the race," Martin said. "We need to replace (incumbent U.S. Sen.) Claire McCaskill. And so the fact that Todd Akin is looking at the Senate race, he is a true conservative [and] he's a conservative leader. And I think that matters."
Martin said Akin encouraged him to consider running for the 2nd congressional seat. Asked what he would do if Akin didn't run for Senate and ran for re-election instead, Martin said: "I'm running in the 2nd Congressional District and I'm not changing. I'm not doing anything else."
"I would ask Todd Akin what he's doing," Martin added. "He's a proven conservative leader and you can get an answer out of him. But I'm here and we're staying."
But Martin will be facing a couple of traditional political challenges.
One is the fact that he doesn't reside in the 2nd District -- not a requirement in congressional bids, but preferable. Martin, who lives in the city of St. Louis, roughly "five long city blocks" away from the congressional border. He could face attacks from other GOP rivals who do reside in the 2nd, such as former Ambassador Ann Wagner, a Ballwin resident who has all-but-announced, and state Sen. Jane Cunningham, R-Chesterfield, who has said she's likely to run.
Asked if he could be lost in the shuffle if candidates such as Wagner and Cunningham also run for the seat, Martin said, "What we know today is I am the only candidate who said he's running for the 2nd Congressional District."
"There have been exploratory committees and other talk," Martin said. "I welcome in the primary as many candidates as they think could contribute. All I know is our families and our supporters and people I talk to say, 'You should do this because I think you could contribute.'"
"People need to understand that the way the Constitution is written is that you can live outside of the district," Martin said, noting that a Libertarian candidate in his race last year was from Warrensburg. "But we intend to be in the district come election day. My wife [and I], we have a bunch of kids. Life is going to be busy and we're very careful about that. But I think people in the cycle after redistricting recognize that there's tumult."
Martin's residency also could negate any GOP attacks against U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis, who has been pondering for weeks whether to run in the new 2nd District (or the new 1st, where his residence will be situated) since the new congressional redistricting map does away with his current 3rd District.
Martin added that even though he disagreed with Carnahan's politics, he said he's "invested in the St. Louis community."
"He's been here for 15 or 16 years, sort of like I have, and I think what matters is how hard you work and what you care about," Martin said. "We've got to make sure that the people who are representing us are fighting shoulder-to-shoulder, neighbor-to-neighbor to make things work."
In any case, Martin's shift raises the prospect of a rematch with Carnahan in 2012; the two waged an expensive and high-profile fight last fall in the 3rd District. But this time, Martin's first challenge will likely be a potentially crowded Republican field.
If Martin is the nominee and faces off in a re-match against Carnahan, the dynamics of the campaign could be markedly different. For one thing, Martin could be seen as the favorite this time around since the 2nd District has numerous Republican strongholds in west St. Louis County and St. Charles County.
Martin said Carnahan will be tough to beat if he decides to run in what is now Akin's district. He said that prominent fundraising entities -- such as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee -- could help Carnahan out. But Martin said the fact that he nearly won against Carnahan in a Democratic-leaning district is an attractive aspect of his candidacy.
"I do think that a Carnahan on the ballot in '12 with big name ID and with people knowing him will be a formidable candidate," Martin said. "And I think we have to be careful to make sure that whoever is the Republican is a clear, real conservative, proven conservative who can also get votes."
Martin previously served as chairman of the St. Louis Election Board, before becoming chief of staff to then-Gov.Matt Blunt, a fellow Republican. Martin resigned from the latter post about 15 months later, in the midst of a controversy over the handling of emails in the governor's office.
Martin is former director of Missouri Club for Growth, a conservative group that advocates low taxes and less government, created a group that unsuccessfully fought against InBev's acquisition of Anheuser-Busch Cos., In., and served as president of the American Issues Project, a group that he notes "led a nationwide effort to highlight the ties of terrorist Bill Ayers and then-Sen. Obama" during the 2008 presidential campaign.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee used Martin's announcement as an opportunity to jab at Akin, by casting Martin as arguably the stronger Senate hopeful.
"The Republican establishment in Washington, D.C., is now hanging its hopes on their fifth or maybe sixth option -- Medicare-killing Todd Akin," a DSCC spokesman said. "Republicans now appear stuck with a deeply-flawed extremist whose frightening voting record is not what Missourians are looking for. Todd Akin is a chief proponent of the extreme spending plan to end Medicare and cut funds for nursing homes. In fact, Akin was one of the top cheerleaders of the plan and stood shoulder to shoulder with Paul Ryan on national television to show his support for the Medicare-killing plan when it was first introduced."
