Saint Louis, Mo. — Bill Otto hit the ground running after Memorial Day with an announcement that he will be seeking a congressional seat in 2016.
Otto, a Democrat and state representative, announced today that he’ll be running in Missouri’s 2nd Congressional district and looking to challenge incumbent Ann Wagner, in what many observers see as an uphill climb for the former air traffic controller.
Otto served on the city council of Bridgeton where he has actively taken part in the landfill cleanup saga plaguing the region for years. Otto is also a Navy Veteran and former air traffic controller who says the constituents of the 2nd district need a representative in congress who “puts us ahead of their political ambitions.”
Wagner, originally elected in 2012, will be a difficult incumbent to unseat and has a reputation as a ferocious campaigner. Wagner breezed through her 2012 election and 2014 re-election in between seeking the RNC chairman post and making waves in congress pressing for new legislation on human sex trafficking.
But Otto is hoping to paint Wagner as part of the Washington D.C. problem: do-nothing and self-serving.
“Congresswoman Wagner has simply dropped the ball in representing us,” Otto said in a statement. “We need a representative who understands our needs and puts us ahead of their personal political ambitions, a person who is more concerned about the people of our District than their political party, a person who can truly work across the aisle, make the hard decisions, and then is willing to come home to explain their actions.”
Collin Reischman was the Managing Editor for The Missouri Times, and a graduate of Webster University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.
