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Bishop Davidson enters HD 130 race, setting up GOP primary

Bishop Davidson has thrown his hat into the race to replace term-limited Rep. Jeff Messenger, setting up a Republican primary in 2020. 

With almost half of a year until filing officially opens, Davidson is set to go up against Macy Mitchell for the GOP nomination to be the next representative of Greene County’s HD 130. The district includes the communities of Republic, Willard, Ash Grove, Walnut Grove, and Springfield. 

Committees for both candidates were created in August, and thus no financial information is available to date. 

“Our conservative tradition needs vision. We have enough Republicans who call themselves conservative, but we need more conservatives who call themselves Republican. It would be easy to send another Republican to [Jefferson] City. What we need is a true conservative who understands more than the party’s bullet-points but knows the why of conservatism,” Davidson said in a statement. 

Broadly, Davidson noted his vision is to foster community, fight for life, forestall federal encroachment, and fend off attacks on the First and Second Amendments. His platform included family, churches as the epicenter of social services, school choice, creation of business-friendly environments, felon re-enfranchisement, and maintaining a federal-state dynamic balance. 

“I can write a platform all I want, but I really love hearing from folks the issues important to them— that’s the good work of a representative,” he said.

Davidson grew up in the district as one of nine children. After graduating from Republic High School and the University of Missouri, Davidson went to work for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, an educational non-profit established by William F. Buckley Jr., in 1953. He later worked at the conservative Heritage Foundation.

In a press release, Davidson said he has stayed invested in his community and “longed to be home and returned to be near family.” He has volunteered with organizations such as Missouri Boys State and Baptist Hill Boys and Girls Camp and has hosted English line dances.