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Politically Speaking: State Rep.-elect Gunby On What Her Win Means For Missouri Dems

St. Louis Public Radio | By Jo Mannies,
Julie O'Donoghue, Jason Rosenbaum
Published December 3, 2019 at 3:12 PM CST
State Rep.-elect Trish Gunby, D-St. Louis County, poses for a portrait in the St. Louis Public Radio studios.
Jason Rosenbaum I St. Louis Public Radio
State Rep.-elect Trish Gunby, D-St. Louis County, poses for a portrait in the St. Louis Public Radio studios.

State Rep.-elect Trish Gunby is the latest guest on Politically Speaking. The St. Louis County Democrat talked with St. Louis Public Radio’s Julie O’Donoghue and Jo Mannies about her victory in the 99th House District special election that flipped the seat.

Gunby defeated Republican Lee Ann Pitman to serve out an unexpired term in a district that takes in Valley Park, Manchester, Twin Oaks and parts of unincorporated St. Louis County. 

Here’s what Gunby discussed with O’Donoghue and Mannies:

  • Gunby talked about how she plans to focus on voting rights issues after she’s sworn in to the House. Before she decided to run for public office, Gunby worked with others to challenge the state’s photo identification law.
  • She elaborated on her decision not to shy away from her views in favor of abortion rights and restricting access to firearms. Gunby said many Democratic voters in the district had been waiting for a candidate who champions their issues and principles.
  • Gunby discussed her strong support for LGBTQ rights, and added that she will support an effort to add sexual orientation and gender identity to the state’s anti-discrimination statutes. 
  • With Democrats winning governor’s contests in Louisiana and Kentucky, Gunby talked about how her party is making headway in historically GOP-leaning areas — including places like St. Louis County.


Gunby was a marketing professional for Citicorp and Purina. In addition to being involved with the St. Louis Area Voting Protection Coalition, she also served as the social justice coordinator with Manchester United Methodist Church. 

She ended up raising substantially more money than Pitman in the 99th District special election. That seat became open after Jean Evans resigned to become executive director of the Missouri Republican Party.

Gunby will take office on Jan. 8, 2020.

The podcast is sponsored by the St. Louis-based law firm of Capes Sokol. 

Follow Julie O’Donoghue on Twitter: @jsodonoghue

Follow Jo Mannies on Twitter: @jmannies

Follow Trish Gunby on Twitter: @TrishForMO

Music: “1,000,000” by Nine Inch Nails

Copyright 2021 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit St. Louis Public Radio.

Missouri News
Jo Mannies
Jo Mannies has been covering Missouri politics and government for almost four decades, much of that time as a reporter and columnist at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. She was the first woman to cover St. Louis City Hall, was the newspaper’s second woman sportswriter in its history, and spent four years in the Post-Dispatch Washington Bureau. She joined the St. Louis Beacon in 2009. She has won several local, regional and national awards, and has covered every president since Jimmy Carter. She scared fellow first-graders in the late 1950s when she showed them how close Alaska was to Russia and met Richard M. Nixon when she was in high school. She graduated from Valparaiso University in northwest Indiana, and was the daughter of a high school basketball coach. She is married and has two grown children, both lawyers. She’s a history and movie buff, cultivates a massive flower garden, and bakes banana bread regularly for her colleagues.
See stories by Jo Mannies
Julie O'Donoghue
Jason Rosenbaum
Since entering the world of professional journalism in 2006, Jason Rosenbaum dove head first into the world of politics, policy and even rock and roll music. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, Rosenbaum spent more than four years in the Missouri State Capitol writing for the Columbia Daily Tribune, Missouri Lawyers Media and the St. Louis Beacon.
See stories by Jason Rosenbaum