Missouri Midterms 2018: McCaskill Falls, Medical Marijuana Passes

MISSOURI — Missouri voters went to the polls on Tuesday with some big decisions in front of them. Despite hopes of a "blue wave," Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill was defeated by her Republican challenger, Josh Hawley. McCaskill had a tough reelection fight over the past several weeks. Her loss means that while Democrats seem to have captured the House, Republicans will gain seats in the U.S. Senate come January.

(SEE ALSO: Reports Of Long Lines, Broken Voting Machines In St. Louis)

Democrat Cort VanOstran, hoping to unseat three-term Republican Rep. Ann Wagner in Missouri's second district, also saw the numbers turn against him as the night drew on. Once a solidly red House seat, the polls had shown the two candidates neck and neck. VanOstran had been knocking on doors right up until the election in hopes of getting his voters to the polls.

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Farther down the ticket, voters have rejected a hike to the state's gas tax, given minimum wage workers a pay raise, voted to clean up state politics and legalize medical marijuana.

In St. Louis County, voters re-elected County Executive Steve Stenger and also approved a range of propositions that will strip him of some of his power. Voters also approved a tax hike to fund an expansion of the Saint Louis Zoo in the north county.

Tuesday was a beautiful day with temperatures on the mild side and not a raindrop in sight. That may be one reason turnout was so high. A 2007 study published in the Journal of Politics found that rain can depress voter turnout by as much as 1 percent per inch.

The researchers also found that rain tends to boost Republicans' share of the vote (umbrella inequality, maybe?) and may have been a significant factor in the elections of 1960 and 2000.

In fact, despite some problems reported at the polls on Tuesday, voter turnout in St. Louis and St. Louis County approached record levels for a midterm election, officials said. The St. Louis County board of elections said as of Tuesday afternoon that turnout had already climbed past where it was during the last midterm election in 2014.

Some voters waited upward of an hour and lines stretched around buildings. As of 7:00 p.m., when the polls closed, almost 400,000 voters in St. Louis County had made it to the polls, according to elections officials. That's about 59 percent of the county's registered voters, numbers usually reserved for presidential elections.

If you were one of those voters, you might want to hang on to that "I Voted" sticker. Plenty of places across St. Louis are offering discounts for displays of civic virtue. West End Grill and Pub, for example, will give anyone with a sticker free dessert. You can also find deals at The Monocle, Shake Shack and Alpha Brewing Company, where voters can get free beer all evening (one at a time, please). The Missouri Botanical Garden is also offering half-price admission for anyone with their stickers and Left Bank Books will even give you a 20 percent discount.

Find results (when they come in) for the most important races being decided today:

• Missouri U.S. Senate Race
• Missouri-02
• Medical Marijuana
• Clean Missouri, Gas Tax, Minimum Wage
• St. Louis County Ballot Initiatives

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Photo by J. Ryne Danielson/Patch