Two Candidates Introduce Themselves in District Two Missouri House Race

The abrupt decision by State Rep. Mazzie Christensen to drop out of the House District 2 race reopened the filing for the race. On Tuesday, April 7th, Casey Scott filed as a Democrat. Her biography is below.  After the Sheridan Express went to press, a Republican, Brandon Harvey, joined the race. His bio is below as well. On Thursday, another Republican, Phil Fox, filed for the seat. They are joined by Freddie Griffin (GOP) and Shelby Dreier (Libertarian), who had already filed.

Brandon Harvey, Phil Fox, and Freddie Griffin will face off in the GOP Primary in August. The winner will face Casey Scott (Democrat) and Shelby Dreier (Libertarian) in November.

The following two bios were provided by the candidates.

Casey Scott

Casey Scott of Trenton Missouri, officially announced her candidacy for State Representative in District 2, seeking the Democratic nomination in the November 2026 election.

Casey Scott is a rural healthcare professional, community leader, and problem-solver who has built her career around one simple belief: where you live should not determine whether you can get the care you need.

Born and raised in Northwest Missouri, Casey understands both the strengths and the challenges of rural communities because she has lived them. After earning her Associate of Arts degree from North Central Missouri College, she completed her Radiologic Technology education at Hillyard Technical Center and went on to earn advanced certifications in Computed Tomography & Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Additionally pursuing a role as an MRI Safety Officer and obtaining further education in MRI safety.

Casey began her career working in rural hospitals across Missouri, Iowa, and Kansas, often serving facilities with limited resources but significant need. In these settings, she saw gaps in the healthcare system up close, especially for patients requiring specialized imaging.

While working as a Lead MRI Technologist at Harrison County Community Hospital, Casey identified a critical issue: patients with complex implant conditions were frequently unable to receive MRI scans locally due to safety concerns and limited resources. For many, that meant traveling long distances, delaying care, or going without it altogether.

Rather than accepting those barriers, Casey took action. She pursued advanced MRI safety training and certification, equipping her hospital to safely scan patients who had previously been turned away. Her work expanded access for patients who would otherwise have faced significant hardship simply to receive necessary imaging.

In her current role with ScanLab & ImagingU, she continues this mission, sharing a commitment to advancing MRI and CT education and helping revolutionize healthcare.

Casey has also held multiple leadership roles within the Missouri Society of Radiologic Technologists, including Parliamentarian, Secretary, Exhibits Chair, and Vice President, helping support professionals across the state.

Her work extends beyond healthcare. Casey has organized local fundraising efforts, including events supporting animal shelters and other community needs, and remains actively involved in strengthening the place she calls home.

As a mother of two daughters, Casey is deeply invested in the future of Missouri’s communities. She spends her free time outdoors with her children, hiking local state parks and teaching them resilience, responsibility, and care for the land.

Casey Scott is running to bring that same practical, solutions-focused approach to public service, strengthening rural healthcare, supporting working families, and ensuring communities like hers are seen, heard, and supported.

Brandon Harvey

Brandon Harvey, a lifelong Missourian and community leader, has announced his candidacy for Missouri State Representative in District 2, a Northwest Missouri district rooted in agriculture, small business, and strong local values.

Harvey, who has deep family ties in Missouri dating back to the early 1800’s, currently serves as a loan officer at Farmers Bank of Northern Missouri and is active in both civic and political organizations across the region. With a background in working with families, farmers, and small businesses, Harvey says he is ready to bring practical, conservative leadership to Jefferson City.

“I’m running to give my family and our area the best way of life,” Harvey said. “Growing up in Missouri, I know the impact of our rural businesses and schools. We need leadership that continues to put people first, not politics, rein in the spending in Jefferson City, and protect our rural way of life.”

A committed conservative, Harvey has been involved in the Grundy County Republican Committee and local grassroots efforts, including work surrounding Amendment 3. He also serves as treasurer of the Trenton Lions Club, reflecting his ongoing investment in the local community.

“I’ve spent my career working alongside the people who make our communities run,” Harvey said. “We need leadership that will stand up to massive data center expansion, protect our rural way of life, and defend the values our communities are built on.”

As a candidate, Harvey has made clear his priorities include protecting life, defending Second Amendment rights, supporting Missouri farmers, strengthening rural infrastructure, and protecting family farms from outside pressures such as data center expansion that do not benefit local communities.

“This campaign is about the people of District 2,” he said. “I will work hard, listen closely, and represent our district with integrity. I’m here to work for you, not the Jefferson City bureaucracy.”

Harvey and his wife, Katie, have been married for 13 years and are raising their three children in north Missouri. Katie is a fifth grade teacher at Pleasant View R-6. The family attends St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Trenton. When not working or on the campaign trail, Harvey enjoys hunting, fishing, spending time outdoors, and supporting his children’s activities.

 

New Candidate Files for District 2

Casey Scott, a Democrat, filed for Missouri House District 2 Tuesday. Normally, the filing deadline for the August primaries is March 31st. But since incumbent Mazzie Christensen dropped out at the last minute, the filing period for the district reopened. Republican Freddie Griffin Jr. and Libertarian Shelby Dreier have already filed. The three candidates will oppose each other in the November general election.

 

Opinion -- How to Reduce Abortions Without Removing Access

By Lois Pontius

Democratic Candidate, House District 2

I am pro-life. I even have a problem pulling up perfectly healthy plants in the garden when my husband says, “They are planted too thick; you have to thin them out.” We are all pro-life. We would all like to reduce abortions, but we have different ideas about how to accomplish that. Studies have shown that simply passing restrictive laws to abolish abortions is ineffective. Some studies have even shown that there are actually more abortions in countries with very restrictive abortion laws than in those with more permissive laws. But illegal abortions are dangerous, maiming and killing many young women. So the restrictive laws banning abortions are not about reducing abortions; it is about controlling women – like the Taliban. Or perhaps a more insidious ulterior motive is a divide and conquer strategy by those forces who are planning to overthrow our democratic form of government and install an autocratic dictatorship – like the Taliban. It seems to be quite effective; it certainly has divided us. There is a better way to reduce the number of abortions without infringing on the rights of people to make their own medical decisions with the aid of their personal healthcare providers.

The obvious, no-brainer, common-sense way to reduce the number of abortions is to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies! Here is the game plan:

–Education. Proper education of children about human reproductions, starting with the two year old who is awaiting the arrival of a new baby brother or sister. (No storks or cabbage patches in this story.) Continuing with age-appropriate, scientifically-correct, and morally-based education and counseling concerning physiology and personal responsibility as the child grows in maturation and intellectual ability. No, this is not “grooming!” Get over it!

–Prioritize the fight against sexual violence. Reducing sexual violence begins at a young age as part of comprehensive sex education, including respect for one’s own body and others’ bodies. Prioritize stricter laws against sexual violence, prosecute offenders of sexual violence, and encourage more bystander training and community support across the country. 

–Improve access to contraception. Preventative measures work better than curative measures. Providing free contraceptive counseling and contraception of their choice to low income families would be a highly effective way to reduce unintended pregnancies.

–Require federal paid family leave. The United States is one of only two nations in the world that does not guarantee paid family leave for parents. The most common reason given for having an abortion is the inability to financially support a child or another child. A very large percentage of abortion patients have an income level below the poverty level or are low income. Paid family leave would provide time for healing from childbirth, offer financial stability, and develop nurturing relationships and environments for their children.

–Offer universal healthcare. I was amazed at what childbirth costs are today. I think my first childbirth cost in 1964 was $150.00, and I thought that was a lot then. Now, I understand it runs in the thousands of dollars, even with insurance. For low income families, that can be a dealbreaker. Universal healthcare would provide better prenatal and post-natal healthcare and make the childbirth process more accessible and safe. In addition to decreasing the need for abortions, it would also decrease the maternal mortality rate, which for the United States, is the highest rate of all the developed countries. This should also include mental health support for postpartum depression, which affects as much as one in seven parents who recently gave birth.

–Offer affordable or free childcare options. When mothers get more financial support for childbearing, removing the financial strain of caring for young children, they are much less likely to pursue abortion.

–Insure access to safe and affordable housing. Housing costs have risen so sharply that for low income families, it is very difficult to provide a safe place for children to live along with providing the other essentials of a health environment for children. It discourages women from continuing a pregnancy.

It may seem rather expensive to fund all these measures, but would it be any more expensive than all the lawsuits that are going to be flying all over the country with the current situation being as it is? The recent vote in Kansas makes it very clear that the people do not want abortions banned. Those candidates facing an election in November had better take notice. Some of them may need to do some backpedaling between now and November.

Worth County Bond Issue Fails Again; Boyd Stuns Railsback in District 2; Summers Wins Easily

The Worth County Bond Issue failed again. With a higher turnout than last time, there were 327 “Yes” votes and 375 “No” votes. These figures do not include Independence Township. All figures are unofficial. The measure needed four sevenths.

The shocker of the night came from the 2nd District. With 31 out of 41 precincts reported according to the Missouri Secretary of State’s Office, Mazzie Boyd had 3,661 votes to 1,737 for Randy Railsback. These figures were as of 9:45 pm Tuesday night. Worth County’s numbers were closer, as Boyd had 306 votes while Railsback had 286 with all precincts in.

In the one locally contested race in Worth County, incumbent Jubal Summers easily survived a primary challenge from Robin Davidson, getting 498 votes to 96 for Davidson.

The other shocker came at the statewide level. As of Tuesday at 9:45 pm, Attorney General Eric Schmitt had 165,388 votes to 94,460 votes for Vicky Hartzler, who was endorsed by the Farm Bureau and other farm interest groups. Former Governor Eric Greitens, who touted big leads in the polls throughout the cycle, came in third with 77,733 votes. This is with 1,535 of 3,592 votes in.

The Democratic US Senate race was closer with Trudy Busch-Valentine narrowly leading Lucas Kunce with 54,511 votes to 49,415 for Kunce.

Sam Graves easily won reelection on the Republican side. With 364 out of 452 precincts counted, Graves had 57,178 votes to 6,463 for Christopher Ryan, 5,741 for Brandon Kleinmeyer, 4,887 for Dakota Shultz, and 1,893 for John Dady. He will face Henry Martin, who had 9,725 votes to 7,202 for Charles West and 4,390 for Michael Howard.

The State Senate race for District 12 turned out to be no contest. Rusty Black ran away with the race with 15,987 votes to 6,036 for J. Eggleston and 2,457 for Delus Johnson with 148 out of 188 precincts reported.

In District 1, only 11 out of 41 precincts were in. Jeff Farnan had 882 votes, Alan Bennett 614, Holly Cronk 249, Jasper Logan 197, and Michelle Horner 150.