Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Missouri Rep. Jo Ann Emerson plans to resign in February
Posted
by Jonathan Bender
on Tue, Dec 4, 2012 at 8:04 AM
- Wikipedia
- Emerson is breaking up with Congress.
The longest-serving member of Missouri's congressional delegation will be stepping down next February. Only a month after handily winning re-election with nearly 72 percent of the vote, U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (MO-8)
announced her resignation Monday so that she can become the president and chief executive officer of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.
"I am not leaving Congress because I have lost my heart for service - to the contrary - I see a new way to serve. I did not go seeking this opportunity, but I am excited about the new challenge it offers to find ways to promote strong rural policy," Emerson said in a statement.
A special election will be held to fill the moderate Republican's seat. The Associated Press reports that Missouri Republican Party Chairman Lloyd Smith and former state Treasurer Sarah Steelman are interested in the post that Emerson has held since 1996.
Tags: jo ann emerson, missouri, congress, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, sarah steelman, lloyd smith, Image
