ST. LOUIS—Missouri House Democrats voted to expel embattled State Rep. Sarah Unsicker from their caucus, party leadership announced Thursday, less than two weeks before the start of the 2024 legislative session in Jefferson City.

“The House Democratic Caucus is dedicated to the values of inclusiveness, tolerance and respect. When a member fails to uphold those standards, the caucus has a duty to act. Rep. Unsicker is free to choose her associations, but the caucus enjoys that same freedom. As a result, House Democrats today voted to end its association with Rep. Unsicker by expelling her as a caucus member,” caucus leadership said in a joint statement.

Unsicker has faced criticism in recent weeks over her use of social media to promote two men who have been linked to conspiracy theories and anti-Semitic ideologies. The Shrewsbury Democrat was stripped  of her legislative committee assignments earlier this month and was the subject of at least two complaints from the caucus, Minority Floor Leader Crystal Quade confirmed to Spectrum News Tuesday.

What You Need To Know

  • State Rep. Sarah Unsicker was first elected to the Missouri House in 2016

  • She cannot seek re-election to the House due to term limits. She has dropped out of the race for Attorney General but has said she will announce her political future in January. She said Thursday she will remain in the Democratic party.

  • Unsicker has already been taken off her committee assignments

  • The Missouri General Assembly opens Jan. 3 in Jefferson City

Quade could not release details behind the complaints Tuesday, citing confidentiality.

Unsicker published a statement she said was read ahead of the caucus vote Thursday.

"I have appreciated the opportunity to work as a Missouri Democrat since I was elected in 2016. I believe the charges against me are a character assassination from a wing of the party that I want nothing to do with,” the statement said in part. “I do not believe anyone is being honest about the reasons they want to remove me from the House Democratic Caucus,” she continued, while pointing to prominent Missouri Democrats, including some not in the state legislature, who have been criminally charged and convicted.

“I am bringing this up now to let people know that this criminality will no longer be tolerated,” Unsicker said.

On Dec. 14, Unsicker said she was dropping out of the Democratic primary for Attorney General after her office turned over what she said were allegations of foreign election interference in Missouri connected to her Democratic opponent, Elad Gross. 

Gross has denied the allegations and had previously called on Unsicker to resign from the House and drop out of the Attorney General’s race.

Sec. of State Jay Ashcroft said Monday that his office has “not been provided any evidence that even remotely relates to Missouri election interference,” and that Unsicker declined to fill out a complaint form that could have included more information.

Unsicker reiterated Thursday that she will announce her future political plans next month. She cannot seek re-election to the House due to term limits. She said in her prepared remarks that she would “remain a member of Joe Biden’s democratic party.”