Missouri congressional candidate Sean Smith’s message to voters is simple: “Enough is enough!”

Smith, who currently serves on the Jackson County Legislature, says voters need real choices for elections to be meaningful. That’s why he’s running in the 2024 election against entrenched incumbent Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.

“My candidacy came about because I believe I’m a good option for voters to consider for Missouri’s 5th Congressional District (CD5),” he told The Heartlander. “I see so many people in Congress staying for so long that I doubt whether they are still truly committed and understand what their local community needs.

“Elections that don’t provide voters a good choice between two candidates, and the massive ‘incumbency advantage,’ can lead to our congressional representatives becoming complacent and disconnected from the needs of their constituents.”

Too often, he says, elected officials go off to Washington only to put their own interests first. He vows to help change that.

“In my brief time as a legislator, I have witnessed how easily the ‘perks’ can skew your perspective and leave you out of touch with the public. I can’t imagine how different my opponent’s perception of our community is after he has spent decades in Washington. Too many laws passed by Congress reflect that there is a priority on protecting and enriching themselves, instead of focusing on the well-being of the citizenry. 

“First and foremost, I will endeavor to represent the people of CD5. The interest of our citizens will always take precedence over my personal priorities. The job of an elected representative isn’t to impose his or her will on our citizens; rather, it is to understand the needs and priorities of the citizenry and work to improve their lives.”

Smith points to his productivity and accountability as a Jackson County legislator when contrasting his record with Cleaver’s.

“In his two decades in Washington, my opponent has sponsored only a handful of bills that became law. Two of these were to rename post-offices. I believe our community deserves a more productive representative.  My [tenure] reflects a very strong productivity record, including sponsoring numerous pieces of legislation that helped bolster our public safety infrastructure.

“I have also advocated for and passed several pieces of legislation which helped protect the wonderful assets we have in our parks system. Additional legislation that I sponsored, and was passed, engaged resources from the state to help with the massive problem our unelected assessor created in the 2023 reassessment.

“Aside from actual legislation, my record as a constituent advocate has been widely acknowledged. And across every community I receive praise and thanks from the taxpayers I’ve helped. I make myself as easily available as possible. By contrast, when I contacted my opponent’s office and tried to arrange time with him (before I was even considering running for Congress) I could never reach him.

“As a county legislator, I was asking for his help with a matter that is important to our mutual constituents and I couldn’t even get a call back or meaningful response. But a non-response speaks volumes, and I hear stories about the non-responsiveness of my opponent constantly. I will prioritize making myself available and ensuring my office responds to all constituent concerns.”

Smith says his top priorities for representing the people of District 5 are “safety, security and success.”

“Safety relates to public safety, especially reducing crime and the impact of crime on our community. Over the past decade our police officers have been demoralized and now our ability to recruit new officers is precarious. … I will sponsor a federal effort to add 200,000 police officers throughout the United States. 

“I will also work to help make our justice system more efficient. Presently, the accused are often left in limbo and sometimes incarcerated for months or even years before trial. We must take steps to make our justice system moves things along more rapidly while still fully protecting the rights of the accused.

“Security is about our border and our stature in the world as a superpower. Our border must be secured. … A significant amount of the crime we are experiencing is directly related to drug trafficking, and the primary supply-line of illegal drugs, including fentanyl, comes into the U.S. across our porous border. We must hold the administration accountable to enforce the laws and policies that exist. We must also provide the resources and political will to secure the border. 

“Security is also about our ability to help reduce the number of armed conflicts globally. We must have a strong military and strong diplomatic relations to lead the world and reduce the number of regional wars that occur. 

“Success refers to the ability of our citizens and families to thrive and be successful. That includes economic success, health and well-being, and overall happiness. We want the people of [CD5] to have opportunities to thrive. 

“Economically, we need to control federal spending, because when we spend excessively the natural consequence is inflation. We also need to facilitate the prudent use of the natural resources we have here in America. Specifically, we should have policies in place that allow energy independence. … Fuel prices impact virtually every other price, and it is imperative that we have rational policies that help ensure stable pricing for energy. 

“We also need to preserve the traditional path to financial stability of home ownership. Institutional investors are competing with folks who want to buy a home to live in. We need federal policies that prioritize owner occupancy over investor-owned properties.”

Finally, to voters who are undecided, he says change is needed if you want better results.

“As a nation we face some daunting challenges. Decades of Washington insiders looking out for themselves and their big donors have left many in America believing that the dream of financial success, good health and happiness is no longer attainable. 

“We must take steps to restore the American dream. This includes home ownership, wage growth that outpaces inflation, tax policy that leaves more of your money in your control. These things are all possible, but we can’t expect that the same leaders who have gotten us into this mess will suddenly change and clean up the mess they helped create. Our community is full of people who’ve had enough with runaway government spending, special interests winning and everyday Americans losing.

“I don’t have large donors or special interests paying my way. I’m a simple, self-made, upper-middle-class family man who wants the best for each and every person in our community.

“If you’ve had enough of bad policies, enough government intrusion into your life, enough of our precious resources being squandered overseas, and enough of the infighting in Washington, D.C., I am your guy.”