Brown hopes to enter in 8th as independent

A child of a working-class family from Bernie, Mo., Thomas W. Brown worked his way through college, spent decades as a teacher and retired recently after 10 years as a basketball coach at Meadow Heights School District.

To help fund a new interest, he has taken a job at a hardware store.

Brown will meet with supporters today in Sedgwickville, Mo., and he will pass out petitions in hopes of gathering more than 6,000 signatures between now and March 30. He is the first person to publicly announce an effort to place his name on the ballot as an independent candidate in the 8th Congressional District race.

A special election will be June 4; voters will choose who replaces Jo Ann Emerson, who left Congress in January to take a new job as president and CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.

Three candidates, Steve Hodges, a Democrat, Bill Slantz, a Libertarian and Jason Smith, a Republican, were chosen by their parties as candidates earlier this month.

Brown, who resides in Fredericktown, Mo., wants to be on the ballot to give voters a "real choice" and to provide an opportunity to vote for 8th District residents to be represented by someone more like themselves.

"I just really feel like I could be the best person for this job and that my opinions on many issues match what voters are looking for," he said.

A self-described conservative independent, Brown wants an end to government waste and help create jobs based on infrastructure improvements.

Brown has a bachelor's degree in education and a master's degree in administration.

For more on Thomas W. Brown and the 8th Congressional District race, visit semissourian.com/blogs/ragan/.

eragan@semissourian.com

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