By TJ GREANEY

Southeast Missourian

State Rep. Nathan Cooper, R-Cape Girardeau, fended off a challenge from Democrat Matt Hill Tuesday to retain his seat in the 158th District of the Missouri House of Representatives by a comfortable margin.

In Cooper's first run as an incumbent and first general election with a Democratic opponent, he received 62 percent of the 11,938 total votes cast.

Cooper said he feels energized to start the next legislative session.

"I look forward to continuing the common sense conservative agenda I've set forth in the last two years," he said.

Cooper said he believes the solid victory represents an endorsement of conservative policies, which he believes have helped bring 55,000 new jobs to Missouri and reduce wasteful spending statewide.

Hill said he feared voters saw him as a one-issue candidate because of his outspoken support of stem-cell research and Amendment 2. "There's so much more to government than a single issue," Hill said.

Hill said he has no regrets about the relatively small amount of money he raised. "I knew I could never compete with my opponent financially, but I hoped that people would look at the person as opposed to the person they were sold," Hill said.

Cooper raised $60,337 and Hill raised only $7,343 as of the end of October.

Cooper credited his supporters.

"I'm grateful to the people of Cape Girardeau for the confidence they've shown in me. I thank everyone that walked in parades, stuffed envelopes, walked door to door and contributed monetarily," he said.

Cooper said aside from the national races, he was also keeping an eye on state house races. "I'm optimistic we will still have a majority in the Missouri House of Representatives. The numbers I've seen across the state look very, very good up to this point. There might be a loss of a few seats, but when you have such a wide margin it's tough to keep," he said.

tgreaney@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245