SIKESTON, Mo. -- One of the area's few Democratic incumbents in state legislative office will face a challenge from a former Republican commissioner of Scott County in the 161st District race.

The incumbent is Democrat Steve Hodges; the challenger, Republican Ron McCormick.

"My wife, Amy, and I have been married for 38 years and have called East Prairie our home for most of our lives," Hodges said. "We have three sons and two grandsons. My father, Jim, and I owned and operated the IGA supermarket in East Prairie for 43 years. I graduated from Southeast Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in business administration and received a Master of Business Administration from the University of Missouri. I served 12 years on the East Prairie R-2 school board and have been a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Jaycees and Kiwanis. I have been a member of the local Methodist church for almost 50 years."

"I was born Aug. 27, 1957, in St. Louis, Ill.," McCormick said. "I attended public school in Sikeston until ninth grade. We then moved to Marble Hill. After graduation, I enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. I am married to Mindy Adams McCormick. I have four children, Adam, Brandon, Hannah and Bailey. I have four grandchildren, Zac, Zoie, Zayden and Lilliahna. I graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in 1994; started Heartland Supported Living Inc. in 1997 and sold it in 2005. I was appointed county commissioner in Scott County in 2006. I am a member of Miner Baptist Church."

Each candidate has had business experience to prepare them for the challenges of serving in the legislature.

"I owned and operated a business for several years," McCormick said. "I started and built this business from the ground up. I dealt with all of the state and federal bureaucracy. I hired and trained employees and did payroll. I developed this business into one of the largest in-home services companies in Southeast Missouri."

"Living most of my life in Southeast Missouri and having many farmers as my customers gives me a tremendous understanding of the importance of agriculture to our region and state," Hodges said.

Both candidates also have public service experience.

"When I was first asked to consider running for office, I was told that my education, business experience, community involvement and knowledge of the 161st district would qualify me as a strong candidate for success. I made a trip to Jefferson City to observe the opportunity and enthusiastically decided that this is what I want to do," Hodges said. "My proudest asset is of serving four years as state representative in the Missouri legislature. I attend as many events and activities as possible both in and out of my district."

Ron McCormick

"The two years that I spent as a Scott County commissioner was a good training ground for preparing me for state representative," McCormick said. "The commissioner's primary job is to balance the county budget. While the county budget is much smaller than that of the state, it is no small task. Also managing county roads and law enforcement and responding to natural disasters such as floods and ice storms greatly increased my management and leadership skills."

McCormick added that while running his in-home services company, "I was asked to represent a group of providers advocating for people with disabilities and the providers that supported them."

Hodges also noted his experience in education. "I was a substitute teacher for two years, coached Little League Baseball, and was a Midget League basketball coach for 22 years," he said. "I officiated Missouri school sports for 41 years. I have served on numerous community committees and on the Booster Board of Southeast Missouri State University."

Asked about the biggest issues the Legislature is likely to face and their goals during their term in office if elected, the candidates offered the following comments:

* "The biggest issue in the upcoming general assembly will be job creation and economic development," Hodges said. "The loss of jobs in recent years put Missouri in a downward spiral. Revenues declined because of decreasing sales taxes and state income taxes. As the Missouri Constitution mandates having a balanced budget, legislators had to make difficult decisions in cutting budgets for state departments. The good news is that the decline of revenues has stopped, and year-to-date collections over the previous year are showing positive increases. I am against any tax increases for our citizens, and I also feel the development of new and cheaper sources of energy will be a priority. The largest budget item, education, is a major concern for all of us, and common sense approaches to health care completes the top five needs. My goal is to use my knowledge and experience to represent the 161st district and the remaining citizens of Missouri."

* "No doubt the biggest issue will be the budget," McCormick said. "The budget issue in the state is a result of loss of revenue. The loss of revenue is a result of loss of jobs. There are two things that you can do to solve this problem. One, you can make cuts in the budget or two, you can raise revenue. I support the latter. Small business is the backbone of this country. We need to focus our efforts on helping our small business owners not only survive but to thrive and expand. My goal when elected is to work to attract new industry to the district. We have much to offer manufacturers that relocate to this area. We have good transportation outlets such as three major ports on the Mississippi River, two main interstates and two rail systems. We have much of our area under Enhanced Enterprise Zones which gives business tax breaks for a number of years."