CLAYTON — ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Executive Sam Page will be tasked with appointing a replacement for Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, if Bell indeed wins a congressional seat as expected.
Bell on Tuesday night soundly defeated U.S. Rep. Cori Bush in the primary election for the 1st Congressional District, which covers ºüÀêÊÓƵ city and parts of north, central and west ºüÀêÊÓƵ County. The 1st District is heavily Democratic and Bell is expected to win Nov. 5.
Bell would start his term in Congress in early January.
The ºüÀêÊÓƵ County charter tasks the county executive with appointing a replacement when a vacancy occurs mid-term. That appointee then must be confirmed by the County Council, said Eric Fey, the Democratic director of elections in ºüÀêÊÓƵ County.
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The replacement is required to be the same party as the incumbent.
Whoever is appointed interim prosecuting attorney will be expected to hold that office through Bell’s current term, which runs through the end of 2026.
“I don’t foresee there being a special election for prosecutor, but stranger things have happened,†Fey said.
Page spokesman Doug Moore said Wednesday it is too early to talk about who will replace Bell. But, Moore said, it’s something Page began thinking about as polls indicated Bell could win the primary election.
Bell on Tuesday said Page asked him earlier in the summer about who would make a good replacement for him. Bell said he declined to discuss the issue until after Tuesday’s primary.
“But I imagine we’ll be talking about it in the next few days,†Bell told the Post-Dispatch.
Bell, a 49-year-old municipal lawyer, was elected in 2015 to the Ferguson City Council. Three years later, he upset 28-year incumbent ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Prosecuting Attorney Robert P. McCulloch. He was reelected in 2022.
Sam Alton, who was Bell’s chief of staff until last month, told the Post-Dispatch he hopes Page appoints attorney Chelsea Draper to take over as prosecuting attorney. But Alton noted the situation is somewhat unprecedented so he’s not sure what to expect.
Draper served as Bell’s deputy chief of staff for about three years until she was appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney. She now works as an in-house counsel for a private company. Draper is the daughter of former ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Judge Judy Draper and retired Missouri Supreme Court Justice George Draper III.
“I think that it would make sense to have somebody with an inside knowledge of the office, who has put in the work and has the experience with the office,†Alton said.
Gregg Keller, a GOP strategist who founded the PR firm Atlas Strategy Group, said he’s also heard Draper’s name in conversations about a possible replacement. He noted she is a strong candidate, having been a McCulloch appointee with years of experience in the office.
Keller also pointed out that the timing of the replacement will have a significant influence on Page’s choice: After Tuesday’s primary, the council will likely retain just one clear Page ally come January.
“If Wesley Bell does stay in the prosecutor’s office until he takes a seat in Congress, then it will be the new county council that will be voting on this particular replacement,†Keller said. “So Page is in a very tough, if not impossible, spot, depending upon how strongly he feels about getting one of his acolytes into that position.â€
Whoever is chosen, Alton said he hopes they keep Bell’s progressive vision alive and can create a work atmosphere that attracts talented attorneys despite the “huge pay cut. “
While Missouri says the governor is in charge of picking mid-term replacements for elected positions including prosecuting attorney, that statute does not apply to counties with their own charters.
Joe Holleman of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.