Josendale, Miller advance to April election for St. Joseph mayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- The race for St. Joseph's next mayor will come down to incumbent John Josendale and challenger Larry Miller following the outcome of Tuesday's primary election.

Unofficial results for St. Joseph's Municipal Primary Election held on Tuesday show candidates John Josendale and Larry Miller received the top two vote totals among the field of four candidates, with all 15 precincts now reporting.

Josendale (1,839 votes) and Miller (1,170 votes) will now advance to the General Municipal Election on April 7, an election that also includes multiple races for at-large and district City Council seats.

“With this type of election you just don't know where it's going to go. I appreciate everybody coming out, I appreciate the voters. This was their opportunity to have their voice heard and I think we heard it today," incumbent Mayor John Josendale told News-Press NOW after the vote. "I'm excited about continuing to run and showing the community why I should be elected in April.”

It was a tight race throughout the night for who would finish as the runner up, as McClain and Miller alternated between the second and third spots multiple times as each precinct reported in, with Miller ultimately making the final push to earn the spot.

Tuesday's election results also show a notable decrease in voter participation compared with the last municipal primary in St. Joseph in 2022.

Roughly 10.5% of registered voters participated in Tuesday's primary, which was higher than anticipated, but less than the 2022 Municipal Primary when 18.7% of registered voters turned out. A total of 8,035 fewer ballots were cast this year compared to 2022.

Municipal Primary Election results:

• John Josendale: 1,839 votes | 40.4%
  
• Larry Miller: 1,170 votes | 25.7%
  
• Jonathan McClain: 1,120 votes | 24.6% of vote
  
• Kenneth Reeder: 418 votes | 9%

Josendale said the plan is to set up town hall meetings between now and April to give local voters the chance to interact with and evaluate the candidate's positions.

“I want to continue to talk to the people. I think what we'll try to do is set up some town hall meetings and get Larry involved in those so that they can see us one-on-one and how we interact," Josendale said.

News-Press NOW will continue to update this story, including post-election comments from Larry Miller.