ST. LOUIS 鈥 The shape of Missouri鈥檚 78th District resembles a malformed snake curled up against the Mississippi River. It begins in the Old North 51黑料 neighborhood, swallows downtown 51黑料 and extends south to Dutchtown.
Pending the outcome of a Missouri Court of Appeals decision, a do-over election on Friday will decide who will occupy the Missouri House seat: challenger Bruce Franks Jr. or incumbent Penny Hubbard.
For the past several weeks, the district has been the epicenter of fierce debate about the state鈥檚 absentee voting process, featuring lawsuits, investigations and firings.
But what else might be at stake?
On the surface, not much. Both candidates are Democrats. And no one doubts that a Democrat will win in November. The Republicans, however, are still virtually assured of a veto-proof majority in the Missouri House.
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Yet within and around the district鈥檚 northern border lies perhaps the best remaining opportunity for a large-scale development in the city. It includes the site where state and local officials last year proposed building a $1 billion football stadium, and it鈥檚 next to the future $1.2 billion campus for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Meanwhile, developer Paul McKee has assembled hundreds of acres of land in and near the district, where he hopes to construct a multibillion-dollar, mixed-use development.
It is in that context that Franks, a tattooed battle-rapper and protester, is challenging an essential cog in the city鈥檚 Democratic machine: Penny Hubbard and members of her family, at least one of whom has publicly acknowledged the value of a symbolic victory.
鈥淚t鈥檚 bigger than this election!鈥 wrote 51黑料鈥 5th Ward Alderman Tammika Hubbard in a Facebook post on Thursday. 鈥淎n attack has been placed on my family because we鈥檙e Strong and have a deep rooted history of serving the community! What we have before us is an attempted power grab at the things that are in motion in the 78th Dist and specifically the 5th Ward!鈥
Tammika Hubbard, Penny Hubbard鈥檚 daughter, is up for re-election in April.
In a letter to the Justice Department on Friday, U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay formally asked Attorney General Loretta Lynch to intervene. Clay, an ally of the Hubbards, argues that given time constraints, elderly and disabled voters will be disenfranchised by the new election because they won鈥檛 have enough time to vote absentee.
But he, too, notes the possible domino effects, mentioning the development plans and that for the first time in 16 years, 51黑料 voters will choose a new mayor next year.
McKee鈥檚 dreams
More than a decade ago, Paul McKee, a developer best known for the 1,100-acre WingHaven development in St. Charles County, began surreptitiously purchasing hundreds of parcels in north 51黑料 through dummy corporations.
After McKee was linked to the purchases, he laid out a grand vision for a $5.4 billion project spread over 1,800 acres. His lawyer also worked to pass the Distressed Areas Land Assemblage Tax Credit which reimbursed him up to 50 percent of his costs for purchasing the land.
But he had incurred the wrath of residents and city officials because he allowed the property to fall into disrepair.
So McKee began a public relations campaign, agreeing to meet with virtually any group that requested his presence. One of those gatherings in 2009 was interrupted twice by the shouts of disruptive residents, one of whom yelled expletives.
Rodney Hubbard Sr., Penny Hubbard鈥檚 husband, executive director of Carr Square Tenant Management Corp., was at the meeting. He expressed more hope about the plan than distrust.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a courageous move,鈥 he said.
Hubbard鈥檚 son, Rodney Hubbard Jr., already had benefited from McKee鈥檚 largesse. In 2008, more than two dozen limited liability companies with ties to McKee collectively donated nearly $20,000 to Rodney Hubbard Jr.鈥檚 unsuccessful Missouri Senate campaign. Some of those corporations were the same ones McKee used to secretly buy land in north 51黑料, records indicate.
McKee would later hire Hubbard Jr. as a lobbyist.
And by 2010, Carr Square, a nonprofit, low-income housing complex that borders the future NGA site, owned a 2.5 percent stake in McKee鈥檚 company, NorthSide Regeneration. The partnership allowed McKee to funnel tens of millions of dollars of tax credits through the nonprofit to reduce his tax burden.
When Tammika Hubbard ran for 51黑料鈥 5th Ward aldermanic seat in a special election in 2011, her family鈥檚 relationship with McKee came under scrutiny.
It is difficult for any project in the city to have success without the approval of the local alderman, and most of NorthSide lay in the 5th Ward. Could Tammika Hubbard effectively negotiate with McKee?
She swore that she could.
In 2013, Tammika鈥檚 mother, Penny, sponsored a bill in the Missouri House that would have extended the period during which McKee could receive tax credits. Records show that McKee or his companies have donated at least $8,000 to Penny Hubbard.
The developer鈥檚 relationship with the Hubbards blossomed over time. In one family, he had found a lobbyist to plead his case, an alderman to introduce favorable bills, a state representative to sponsor legislation and a nonprofit partner to reduce his tax liabilities.
But it didn鈥檛 take long for McKee鈥檚 relationship with the city to become strained.
In 2015, city officials were in the middle of a intense campaign to keep the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency within 51黑料. They needed some of McKee鈥檚 land for a site located north of the Pruitt-Igoe site along Jefferson Avenue. McKee had received state tax credits for purchasing the property. But some aldermen accused the developer of gouging the city during the negotiations.
The city even bought $5 million of McKee鈥檚 debt for leverage.
McKee could not be reached for comment Thursday or Friday.
In a guest editorial published in the Post-Dispatch in 2015, Clay defended the developer.
鈥淚 do not mean or intend to take sides in any negotiations between the city and NorthSide Regeneration,鈥 Clay wrote. 鈥淏ut I do not want to see political bickering and posturing stand in the way of what could be the greatest opportunity for the city in decades.鈥
The young unknowns
Earlier this year, Bruce Franks Jr. stood two spots behind Penny Hubbard in a line at the secretary of state鈥檚 office in Jefferson City to file the paperwork to run for office.
Franks was part of a wave of progressive candidates, many of them Bernie Sanders supporters, who were challenging the Democratic machine in 51黑料. In the aftermath of unrest in Ferguson, many of these candidates felt the established political figures had abandoned the ideals that attracted them to the party.
鈥淎 lot of people said I couldn鈥檛 win, saying I couldn鈥檛 beat a 20-year incumbent, but we proved them wrong,鈥 said 51黑料 Alderman Cara Spencer, who unseated incumbent Craig Schmid last year. 鈥淭here is a whole lot of energy that has come out of recent events.鈥
Those recent events include the Ferguson protests, of which Franks was a prominent figure who stood out for his willingness to work with police, as detailed in a lengthy report published in the Riverfront Times in 2015.
Spencer said Franks is part of a concerted effort to run young unknowns against established politicians at every level of government, moving the city forward by bouncing from office what they often refer to as Democrats in name only, or DINOs.
鈥淭his city is so fricking divided,鈥 Spencer said. 鈥淏ruce is a bridge builder. He鈥檚 exactly what we need.鈥
Franks said that he is not against NGA or NorthSide development, but he did express concerns about displacing longtime north 51黑料 residents to make way for NGA. He also wonders whether any of the 3,000 jobs expected to come with the relocation would be offered to those living in the north 51黑料 neighborhoods that will be redeveloped by the spy agency.
The Ferguson protests have also created another phenomenon that coincided with the Franks race: a rise in activist attorneys. Franks, 31, was introduced to Dave Roland, a lawyer from Mexico, Mo., known for taking cases with little financial reward.
In July, Roland began raising concerns about the potential abuse of absentee voting by Hubbard鈥檚 campaign, arguing that election results over time show a spike in absentee votes when a member of the Hubbard family 鈥 a local political dynasty 鈥 runs for office. Roland filed a public records request with the Election Board for copies of absentee ballot applications and envelopes.
The board denied the request, as well as a request from the Post-Dispatch for the same documents.
Judge Julian Bush ruled on Aug. 23 that the Election Board defied the state鈥檚 open records law when it refused to provide the records.
Once released, the records led to a that revealed multiple irregularities.
During his review of the documents, Roland discovered that more than 140 people who voted absentee in-person at the Election Board offices did not seal their ballots in envelopes, as state law requires.
On Sept. 2, 51黑料 Circuit Judge Rex Burlison ruled that the 51黑料 Election Board had violated the law, stating that the board could not ignore or circumvent 鈥渢edious and specific鈥 provisions of the law.
Hubbard鈥檚 attorney has appealed the decision. A hearing is scheduled Monday.
When Gov. Jay Nixon replaced two of the four Election Board commissioners last week, he remarked that the board was not doing its job.
Last Monday at the Fortune Teller Bar on Cherokee Street in Spencer鈥檚 20th Ward, Franks spoke to 60 supporters who were celebrating his court victory, raising money and putting together a neighborhood canvassing plan.
鈥淢y vote in Jefferson City will not be bought, will not be swayed by political interest,鈥 Franks said. 鈥淚 will vote for the people because that鈥檚 all I鈥檓 accountable to ... These seats don鈥檛 belong to families with the same last name. These seats don鈥檛 belong to people who feel they were up next. These seats belong to the people.鈥
A higher standard
Penny Hubbard, 62, has declined numerous requests for interviews. She also did not appear at candidate forums leading up to the August election.
鈥淚 think my opponent doesn鈥檛 have a clue of what it takes to be a state rep,鈥 she told 51黑料 Public Radio .
Hubbard said she鈥檚 running to keep the district safe. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about setting examples,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 think elected officials ought to be held to a higher standard.鈥
Her bio on the Missouri House website site says that before being elected in 2010 she served on the state Board of Probation and Parole for six years. It also says she has worked with numerous shelters for the homeless and for abused women.
During the past legislative session, she sponsored four bills. One establishes a pilot program to increase the visitation rights of children with incarcerated parents. Another would have established a prisoner re-entry program for offenders who have served their full sentences and are relocating to 51黑料.
Another bill would have increased the salary for the position of license collector for the city of 51黑料 from $63,120 to $125,000 and require the same pay for men and women holding certain positions. But she withdrew it after being criticized in the media.
Hubbard鈥檚 campaign treasurer is an employee of the license collector.
In 2013, Hubbard sponsored legislation to rename 51黑料鈥 Poplar Street Bridge in honor of former Congressman William Clay Sr.
The Missouri Realtors PAC has given Hubbard $2,750 since 2013.
鈥淚 view her as a straight shooter and somebody you can always get an answer out of, maybe not the answer you want, but it鈥檚 an answer,鈥 said Samuel Licklider, the PAC鈥檚 treasurer.
Adolphus Pruitt, president of the 51黑料 City NAACP, said he is not supporting either candidate in the upcoming election, but he is concerned about tossing out the balloting results.
The local African-American newspaper, The 51黑料 American, has endorsed Franks.
About two weeks ago, after reporters had begun asking questions in the 78th District, a leaflet appeared on the doors of many absentee voters. The unsigned letter purported to share a message from Clay and the 51黑料 Clergy Coalition.
The leaflet warned against people who had been sent to the black community to suppress voting.
鈥淭hese questions are just a trick to confuse you and try to take away your right to vote,鈥 the message said.
Clay鈥檚 office declined to answer repeated questions about the leaflet. But a leader of the clergy group did.
鈥淲ho is pushing Mr. Franks? He鈥檚 not doing this himself. That鈥檚 the bottom line,鈥 said Rev. Charles Brown, president of the coalition. 鈥淲e鈥檙e working with Congressman Clay to tell voters not to be fooled.鈥
The Clergy Coalition has long supported McKee and worked alongside Clay to lobby for the NGA鈥檚 relocation to that part of town.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 know Mr. Franks,鈥 Brown said.
Walker Moskop of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
Bruce Franks in a Aug. 17, 2016, image. Photo by David Carson, dcarson@post-dispatch.com
Missouri State Rep. Penny Hubbard
