Look at Democratic Rep. Judy Baker’s committees in the Missouri House of Representatives and you’ll find her main issue pretty darn quickly.

• Appropriations -- Health, mental health and social services.
• Health care policy.
• Joint committee on Missouri Health Net.

Baker announced her candidacy in November of 2007, months before Hulshof announced his run for governor. She wanted to run because of a dissatisfaction with how things were going in the country, Baker says, and she thinks many people share that feeling.

At least three other Democrats do in the 9th district primary, but of them, Baker has the most experience with health-care policy with more than 20 years in the health-care field.

In 2007, she added an amendment to an appropriations bill that required Medicaid to pay for telehealth services. That amendment was approved; and according to Baker, it gives rural health clinics access to care they wouldn’t otherwise have through video conferencing with physicians. The benefits are that people have better care that doesn’t require several hours drive, Baker says.

If elected, Baker wants to raise the quality of health care, lower the cost and provide access to everyone. She also wants to offer a system that values privacy, allows people to make choices, and is portable, so someone wouldn’t lose good insurance, for instance, with a job change. In addition, Baker wants more focus on preventative health care and to stop people from using the emergency room as primary care.

All of this could come about through a combination of public and private health care, as long as it’s efficient, Baker says. She wants to offer something with high quality at a low-cost. And it’s not an impossibility, she says.

“Like other nations, we need to provide better health outcomes for lower costs.” Australia is one example of a plan that works, she says, as are some European countries. But access for everyone is essential, she says.

Baker also believes the health-care situation nationwide is at a critical point and that health-care costs are directly tied in with the struggles facing the middle class. Missouri House Democratic Minority Floor Leader Paul LeVota, D-Independence, says he’s impressed with Baker’s work in the capitol.

That includes 2005, when Gov. Matt Blunt proposed to cut 100,000 people from Medicaid. LeVota says Baker helped lead the charge against that legislation, which did pass. So if elected, would Baker be able to make a difference with healthcare legislation? Dave Robertson thinks she would.

The political science professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis thinks health care will be a critical issue next year for whomever is elected president. Obama’s plan is more expansive, he says, and uses more public funding, while McCain’s would reward people who purchase their own health insurance.

“But something will be done, I feel certain, to help increase access to health care.” And if elected, Baker could be a critical vote. Robertson also wouldn’t be surprised to see her on a subcommittee, having a hand in how legislation would be shaped. First, she has to get through the primaries.

Former representative and Republican senator Jon Dolan is now the executive director of the Missouri Health Care Association. Dolan says his views are his own, but Baker is known for playing a large role in Missouri health care.

“I think that Judy Baker has a solid chance.,” he says of the primaries.

But being from Columbia can be an asset and a liability, says political science professor Marvin Overby of the University of Missouri-Columbia. He thinks Baker will do well in the primaries in her home county.

However, Overby says the ideal candidate is one with roots in the other party’s territory and partisan appeal that will carry different parts of the county.

And that person might be Democratic rival Steve Gaw of Moberly, Mo., who has highlighted his rural background in a recent campaign ad.

But Baker says her opponents’ distinctions between rural and urban voters is counterproductive. When she talks to people, they all share the same troubles, wherever they live.

One of them is health care, and Baker thinks experience matters more than a zip code.

Steve Gaw

“It’s just front and center in everybody’s mind,” he says. Specifically, there’s the deficit. We’re borrowing money from the next generation, he says, as well as from China and the Middle East.

“I think that puts us in a weakened condition.”

So does the war with Iraq, Gaw says. And that plays a big part in the current economy. “We need to move toward ending the war in Iraq,” Gaw says.

Finally, he’s concerned about education. Gaw says the opportunities that existed when he grew up don’t exist anymore.

Wait, that’s three issues.

Exactly.

Gaw’s identified with having the support of his colleagues and being able to get legislation passed, says Terry Jones, a political science professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

But he’s not identified with a specific issue.

“He’s known for being a very capable leader.”

And Gaw has been recognized for that with the Distinguished Legislator Award from the Missouri Community College Association.

It’s been years since both that award and his leadership in the House, but Gaw’s campaign manager thinks they’re still relevant because they show how he’ll function if elected.

“Steve was able to be a leader because he was good at finding the areas different parties agreed,” says Jeremiah Levine.

Levine also says Gaw has a reputation as a moderate, and that makes him the only candidate who can win the general election.

But wait -- what happened to the issue? The economy -- specifically, gas prices. Gaw supports proposals to drill offshore.

Levine says Gaw knows there’s no one perfect energy answer -- it’s not just wind, not just ethanol, or drilling or solar power.

“They’re all parts of a solution.”

But Gaw’s working on a plan that uses several different sources, including allowing states to decide if they want to drill off shore.

“He feels like we need to do what we can to puncture that speculative bubble,” Levine says.

And how will that position play with Democrats? With the shock of gas prices, Robertson thinks it won’t hurt him.

The race on the Democratic side is a competitive one, and another thing that might help Gaw stand out from his competitors is that he’s from someplace other than Columbia. In a campaign commercial, Gaw introduces himself as the candidate with rural roots and muddy boots.

And that frame might work for him.

“Part of his appeal is he’s probably the best known Democrat not from Buchanan County,” says Marvin Overby, a political science professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia. “In some ways, he looks a little like Harold Volkmer.”

He’s not quite a blue dog Democrat, says Dave Robertson, a political science professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, but he’s leaning in that direction.

“Gaw clearly is positioning himself for the rural vote in the district,” Robertson says.

And it just might work.

“He’s got some name recognition statewide even, but certainly around the district.”

For additional coverage of the Ninth District races, see the Beacon's Elections section.