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Whispering Gallery Invitational – Regional Quarterfinals

Updated Bracket

King of All Media Region

#1 Tony Messenger 

#8 Eli Yokley 

After a close contest with the king of the Jefferson City morning Dave Drebes, Yokley is off on what could be a run of more of a Cinderalla-esque quest than his journey from the depths of Joplin to the Capitol. Messenger has taken a cavalier approach to the tournament thus far, possibly reflecting the more arrogant nature of the editorial page. This #1 vs. #8 pitches the hardscrabble world of street reporting against the ivory tower nature of the editorial page.

 

#5 Jo Mannies 

#4 Jason Hancock 

Great matchup here between Hemingway’s Star and the bright light of the Beacon. They both fought off upset attempts in the first round to meet here in a tilt where the advantage could come down to the fact that while the pepper in his beard naturally appeals to the youth vote and the salt in his beard provides an air of gravitas which could eat into Mannies’ advantage with the more seasoned set of voters.

 

#11 McGraw Milhaven 

#3 Mark Reardon 

Milhaven pulled off a commanding upset in round 1 and now has a title with more over- and undertones than we have space to tell jokes about. Reardon’s strong performance at Ballpark Village could be an edge, but our editorial board suspects that this could become a surrogate battle. Senator Schmitt is the reigning official state senator of the Mark Reardon Show on KMOX (our sources say this designation is temporary until Jill Schupp is sworn in) and Speaker-elect John Diehl is a member of the round table on Milhaven’s morning show on KTRS. We expect this battle to become so intense that cell service is interrupted on Tucker and in Westport.

 

#7 Jonathan Shorman 

#2 Jason Rosenbaum 

New School vs. New School here. Two men who not only lookalike, but are both tenacious followers of the political process. Shorman pulled off the upset of Kraske in the first round. In voting patterns, we saw Shorman’s support of KU basketball appeal Kansas voters who are constantly hounded as cruel by Kraske for not wanting higher taxes. This fight could come down to the videos and the endorsement of Rosenbaum’s son.

 

Political Hack Region
#1 Jane Dueker 

#9 Roy Temple 

Sometimes the bracket gods are kind and sometimes they are wildly generous. The Dueker/Temple second round matchup is an awesome one of longtime Dem pols and float trip bragging rights could be at stake. We predict the winner of the swing precinct of Birch Tree is the likely winner, as it is the cradle of Missouri leaders. Dark horse factor could be the potential divide in Dueker’s gladiator caucus after the first round grudge match with Pinkerton and the impending summer finale of Scandal.

 

#5 Caitlin Legacki 

#13 Megan Shackelford 

Proof that there is justice in the world, Megan Shackelford, Princess of Labor, defeated MSK in an epic first round matchup, but it doesn’t get any easier from here as she now faces the twitterly-formidable Legacki. We’re hoping this one gets personal and bitter quickly as either will need to be on the top of their snark game to beat the winner of the Dueker/Temple tilt. We just hope that Shackelford is enjoying the big office at The Kelley Group now after establishing her dominance and that if she wins Mike keeps her Barklage Cup shined up for her and her car constantly moved around the city to avoid parking tickets.

 

#6 Jeff Mazur 

#14 Sarah Felts

We are more than fortunate to have this match here in round 2, as one of the Times’ favorite twitters we have ever met is pitched against one of the Times’ favorites we have just met. Felts is a social media phenomenon who is relentlessly on message, while Mazur basically uses his account to mock people and complain about inferior sports (defined as any sport other than National League Baseball). This one will be epic.

 

#10 Mark Jones

#2 Richard Callow

In one where both sides have started with détente, we suspect by mid-week the fur will be flying. Neither is accustomed to losing. Jones is with one of the most dominant forces in state policies and Callow is a one man messaging machine. The irresistible force meets the immovable object. Callow’s love of the Cardinals will likely give him an advantage with voters, while Jones will have a big decision as to whether to mobilize his members. Rural Republican legislators would owe Callow greatly for the week of ease.

 

MissourAH Region
#1 Peter Kinder 

#9 Barry Aycock 

After both squeaked out of first round upset attempts, the men from SEMO now square off in this battle for bragging rights. Highway 60 is the Mason Dixon line in the bootheel and we will see who carries the day. We would all like to be a fly on the wall behind Jason Crowell’s laptop when he votes on this one – we suspect when Survey Monkey recognizes him to close his response there will be a baritoned “no”.

 

#5 Eric Burlison 

#4 Caleb Jones 

A straight toss up in this #4 vs. #5 matchup. Jones is classic networker with a list of contacts spanning Rudi Giuliani to Rudy Keller where Burlison has an internet presence among hardcore conservatives that could give him an upper hand. The voters will likely have the same level of difficulty choosing a winner in this one as the Speaker does when trying to decide whether to send bills to Professional Registration or General Laws.

 

#6 Caleb Rowden 

#3 Todd Richardson 

Can HRCC withstand this safe seat vs. battleground seat matchup? Will Rowden decide to unleash his internet prowess on the next Majority Leader or will Richardson’s deft human resources decisions prior to session make the difference. One chink in the armor could be Richardson’s barely escaping an insurgent performance by TJ McKenna in round one.

 

#7 Elijah Haahr 

#2 Chris Kelly 

The Dean of the House, Rep. Kelly is taking on one of the most junior members in one matchup where we expect sparks to fly. Many outstate Barklage Cup voters expressed dismay in Boone County legislators being upgraded to Missourahians, but we felt there were enough rural Boone Countians who embody Missouriah values, such as John Wright, to upgrade them to top tier MissourAH status. The voters will have a clear choice in this one: Is Boone County truly deserving of Missourah status or does the man from the County of Ashcroft bump them back down to MissourEE status.

 

MissourEE Region
#1 Mayor Slay 

#8 Robert Cornejo

While the Mayor cruised to a convincing win on a crest of anti-Denkinger votes in round one, Rep. Cornejo literally asked his wife to move up the birth of their child so that he could advance. This race between two proven vote getters could end the cooperation and regionalism in the St. Louis area. Could Cornejo’s North County roots be the difference and could Cornejo and his stop-at-anything-to-win strategy make North Countians want to end the movement to re-include the City and ask to be annexed into St. Charles County? Our assumption is that is Senator Dempsey throws in free hair care tips to North Countians and we could have an exodus to St. Chuck on our hands.

 

#5 Jeff Smith 

#4 Jason Kander

Ahhh, an old-fashioned National League vs. American League matchup! There is no predicting who wins this one except that whoever is successful the finest in urban Missouri (or New York) lifestyle will be on display. We wonder if the job offer from the New School to Kander aide Jim Benoist has anything to do with this one.

 

#6 John Diehl

#13 Tishaura Jones

In the first round the man from the “Country” part of Town & County defeated the simple county lawyer Mike Colona now he faces an all new challenge in the winner of a first round upset Tishaura Jones. The man with the cleanest truck bed in the state will be stretched to the limits by a woman whose job it is to make it impossible to park that truck in the city unticketed. Skinker will be on fire for this city/county matchup.

 

#10 Eric Schmitt 

#2 John Lamping 

The last time there was battle on this scale in St. Louis, the state ended up controlling the city police force for 150 years. Schmitt and Lamping are the only remaining combatants in adjoining districts and Ladue/Kirkwood relations are likely to remain strained for decades. Schmitt prides himself on being the tallest senator in the state and while that helped get him through the first round, he has never competed against a man with the impressive hair that Lamping boasts. It’s the age-old question – height vs. hair.  Look for the intelligent, physically attractive, and influential residents of downtown Clayton to have a major say in who wins this contest, which will likely be decided by the senator who mounts the biggest opposition to the Designated Hitter.

 

To vote in the regional quarterfinals, please visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/wgiregionalquarterfinals