Ed Martin Gets Endorsement

Republican Ed Martin announced what might be a key endorsement in his bid to win a seat in Congress, and one that could be a setback for a fellow-contender from Ballwin.

Martin's campaign said Tuesday that Phyllis Schlafly, a longtime, influential member of the conservative wing of the Republican Party, is backing him in the race for Todd Akin's 2nd district House seat.

In the statement released by the Martin campaign, Schlafly said in part, "Whether fighting for lower taxes for families and businesses, taking on ACORN and voter fraud at the St. Louis Election Board, or fighting to stop Jay Nixon's pro-illegal immigration appointments, Ed has shown himself a fearless and courageous conservative."

Former Republican National Committee co-chairwoman also is in the GOP race and will kick off her campaign from her Ballwin home later this week.

In Tuesday's edition of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, reporter Jake Wagman provides on analysis of what the endorsement means for the race.

The Democratic side of the race is still unclear, as Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-St. Louis) whose 3rd District seat brought on by lower population data in the 2010 census, weighs a bid in the 2nd district, or a primary challenge to First District Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-St. Louis).

Creve Coeur currently is represented by the 1st District in Congress and would fall under the 2nd district with the newly-drawn boundaries.

Editor's Note: A previous version of this story described Ann Wagner as the former head of the RNC. She was a co-chair of the RNC beginning in 2001, as reported by the St. Louis Beacon.