Missouri state Sen. Jane Cunningham (R) appears to be closing in on a bid for Missouri’s newly drawn 2nd district Congressional seat.

“I am weighing the options right now and, clearly, seriously considering it,” Cunningham told Roll Call.
Cunningham was a booster of Proposition C, a symbolic ballot measure passed in 2010 that rejected the federal health care law by denying the government the authority to mandate health insurance.

Six-term Rep. Todd Akin (R), who currently represents the Show-Me state’s 2nd district, announced his run for Senate on May 17, opening the race.

Former House candidate Ed Martin, an attorney who was chief of staff to former Gov. Matt Blunt (R), and former ambassador Ann Wagner are declared candidates in the GOP primary for the 2nd district.

“Most people tell me that I am perfectly positioned for it,” Cunningham said in an interview. “My 7th Senatorial district is within the 2nd. It’s where the concentration of Republicans are in the 2nd and I’ve run there for more than a decade.”

Cunningham also emphasized her conservative bona fides, noting that the state party had given her the “Legislator of the Year” award for her work on Proposition C.

The district leans Republican and Cunningham said her “strong Republican credentials” would be important with the majority of voters there.

She said if she decides to run, her primary campaign message would be that she is “the only one who is tested and proven” and the only candidate who has held elected office.

In 2010, Martin lost his bid to unseat Rep. Russ Carnahan (D) in the 3rd district. Wagner lost her bid to run the Republican National Committee to Reince Priebus earlier this year.

“I’ve walked the walk,” Cunningham said. “Anyone can talk the talk, but I’ve walked the walk — I’m tested and proven.”