Clint Tracy

Clinton "Clint" Tracy (born January 1, 1974) is a state representative currently serving his first term in the Missouri House of Representatives. He succeeded the seat held by former State Representative Mary Kasten (R-Cape Girardeau) who retired after filling out the remainder of the term of former State Representative Nathan Cooper (R-Cape Girardeau). Cooper pleaded guilty to immigration fraud in August 2007 and is subsequently in prison. A special election was held on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008, which Kasten narrowly won with 50.2 percent of the vote over Democrat Mike Keefe's 43.4 percent and Libertarian Steve Kinder's 6.4 percent.

Tracy represents Missouri's 158th Legislative District, which consists of most of the city of Cape Girardeau. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life and career

Tracy was born in Greenville, Illinois. He graduated from Cape Central High School in 1992. From there he attended the Naval Academy from 1992 to 1996 before serving in Operation Desert Fox from 1998 to 1999. He has also served as a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy Reserves. In January 2007 he was recalled to active duty to serve with the Army Corps of Engineers in Baghdad, Iraq. He returned in October 2007 and decided to run for state representative. His mother, Debra Tracy, sits on the Cape Girardeau City Council.

Political career

Tracy faced a primary challenge from two other Republicans vying for the seat. These included Jeff Glenn, an executive with Delta Companies and former aide to former U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-Mo.); and Wayne Wallingford, a retired Air Force officer and head of human resources for McDonald's of Southeast Missouri. Tracy took in 41.80 percent of the vote to clinch the GOP nomination on August 5, 2008. Because no Democrat filed to run, Tracy ran unopposed in the November 4, 2008 general election and faced token opposition from Libertarian Robert Roland. Tracy defeated Roland by a three-to-one margin, taking over 76 percent of the vote to Roland's 24 percent.

Electoral history