JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.— Republicans in the Missouri House voted Tuesday to name Majority Floor Leader State Rep. Jonathan Patterson as Speaker-Elect, assuming the GOP keeps control of the House next November and Patterson is re-elected to represent a Lee’s Summit district in Jackson County.
Patterson would succeed House Speaker Dean Plocher, R-Des Peres. Both men will remain in their current roles through the 2024 legislative session. Patterson was first elected in 2018. Plocher is term-limited and is expected to launch a campaign for Lt. Gov. later this fall.
Patterson’s election was not a surprise. Still, Patterson, a doctor who practiced general surgery until last year, told Spectrum News winning the race humbled him. Like many state lawmakers in Jefferson City this week ahead of Wednesday’s veto session, Patterson was visiting a handful of fundraising receptions throughout the day Tuesday.
Unofficially, it appears Patterson would be only the second state representative from Jackson County in Missouri history to become Speaker and the first since 1857.
“To be able to be the first in a great long time is tremendously gratifying and I also do think that Kansas Citians, Jackson County legislators do feel like the focus is on St. Louis and other areas of the state, and that Jackson County gets a little bit left behind and so I’m really looking forward to representing Jackson County and Kansas City,” he said.
Between now and then, Patterson said he hopes the House can focus on infrastructure, public schools, public safety and tax and tort reform that would be “predictable for businesses and working families.”
Patterson was one of two Republicans who voted against the House version of legislation during the 2023 session that would have meant a permanent ban on gender transition surgeries and for minors as well as prohibiting prescriptions for puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for minors.
In April he said he would have preferred a bill that would have “allowed for instances that are exceedingly rare, narrowly tailored and thoroughly studied.” The version of the bill which eventually passed banned those elements for four years but allowed minors who started treatment before the bill took effect Aug. 28 to continue it.
But since Aug. 28, University of Missouri Health Care and Washington University have both announced that they will not prescribe puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones for minors who would be grandfathered under the new law, citing language adding more legal liability that allows for a cause for action in court.
“I think they’re doing what they think is best for their institution in terms of the legalities of the situation. It’s a complex and ever-changing issue. I think the General Assembly did what they felt was right and I think these institutions are doing what they think is right and I think you’re going to see in the coming years there’s going to be more changes on this as people’s views change on it and as institutions get used to what is going on in doctor’s offices,” Patterson said.
With the new role on the horizon, Patterson said Tuesday he will work to support GOP incumbents in the House, but suggested he is staying out of the endorsement business in statewide races, including several featuring his current colleagues.
But on Thursday, he appeared on a list of supporters of State Rep. Cody Smith, who is running for State Treasurer against Vivek Malek, who is running to keep the post in his own right following his January appointment by Gov. Mike Parson.