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John Hewkin has been a sports fan since he was a kid. He’s played, coached and been a fan of sports. I was a sports writer for 15 years before moving back to Missouri, but to this day you will still find me in my man cave a lot of nights and weekends watching something that requires a ball.
Thus, it was unavoidable that Hewkin and I spent the first and last 20 or so minutes of a recent interview talking sports. I also met with his opponent in the race to be state representative of the 120th District, Jen Tracy of Bourbon, the week before. Both are hard-working, community minded people who would love to represent this district.
Barring an upset of quite a large magnitude, though, Hewkin will be the next representative of the district, which includes Dent and Crawford counties. More on that a little later in the column.
Getting into the state political ring has been a long time coming for Hewkin, a Cuba resident. He knows how important timing is in sports. Same goes for politics. He talked a lot about both in our one-on-one interview.
Hewkin has wanted to throw his hat in the political ring for some time. But the timing, he said, wasn’t right until this year.
Way back in 2005 he planned to run for state representative when there appeared to be an opening. But someone reminded him that he had a business, a wife and kids at home, and that spending most of the week much of the year in Jefferson City might not be such a good idea. Oh, by the way, the guy also let Hewkin know there was a young man named Jason Smith who was going to file, and Smith had the backing of a lot of Republicans. So, Hewkin decided against filing and continued to focus on work and home.
Years went by. In 2022 came redistricting, with Crawford and Dent counties making up the 120th District. Maybe that would be a good time to enter politics, he thought. Crawford County is bigger than Dent County, so the numbers would be in his favor. He would have been running against the incumbent, Ron Copeland.
“At Lincoln Days in Crawford County I talked to Ron for an hour,” Hewkin remembers. “We thought alike, and it appeared there would not be a lot gained if I ran. We are both similar with Christian beliefs that guide us. So, I decided I am not going to run. There again I wanted to, but I thought it’s just not time.”
Another opportunity came quickly. He planned to run for senate this year for a seat held by Elaine Gannon, who he says was “voting too liberal.” The 3rd Senatorial District includes Crawford, southern Jefferson, Ste. Genevieve, St. Francois and Washington counties. Gannon decided not to seek reelection, and Hewkin learned that other Republican opponents already had about $100,000 in their campaigns and was told that it takes at least $200,000-$300,000 to win a senate seat.
What the heck, Hewkin didn’t have that kind of money but was going to go for it anyway.
But the night before he was planning to drive to Jefferson City to file for the senate seat, Copeland called Hewkin to tell him he had decided not to seek reelection. That was in October 2023.
“I had not talked to Ron in probably a year,” Hewkin says. “He called me and says hey, would you consider not running for senate and running for state rep. I said let me talk to my wife about it, we will pray about it, and tomorrow morning on our way to Jeff City I will give you a call.”
What happened next finally changed the political trajectory for Hewkin. He called Copeland on the way to Jefferson City, and once he got there filed for state rep, not state senate.
“I called him that morning and told him I feel really good about it, and that’s probably my best opportunity to get to Jeff City,” Hewkin said of the state rep position. “I think the senate thing (race) was going to be a good education for me, but I was going to get thumped. This is probably my best path.”
Prior to this state rep race, Hewkin served as Crawford County Commissioner for six years, first appointed by Governor Matt Blunt. He’s been on other board and committees.
Hewkin, it seems, has always wanted to hold an elected office in Jeff City. If he wins in November, the political dream will become reality.
“In eighth grade our school took a trip to the capitol,” he said. “I told everybody when I got back that someday I’m coming here. I love America, I love my state. I see what’s going on in the world. I’ve got 19 grandchildren, 13 of which are under the age of 12. I just can’t sit here and watch this. I just can’t. I may get to Jeff City and I may be naïve and I am just one of 163 voices, but I am one voice. I feel I am doing my duty. I want to make things better.”
Don’t forget Hewkin is a sports fan. He knows what can happen when a heavy favorite lets their guard down. . . . Upset city, to borrow an old sports cliché.
Hewkin is a Republican. Tracy is a Democrat. And over the past couple decades in this district, Republicans are virtually undefeated. I don’t know what the point spread is when it comes to this race for the 120th District, but it’s a biggie.
“I want to get to know people in this community better,” Hewkin said of the huge advantage he has as a Republican. “I want to make sure people know who I am, what I am about and how I would represent them. You run every race like you are 10 points behind. I have a sports background, and when you take anyone lightly, that’s when you get beat.”
I discussed this same Republican dominance with Tracy during an interview with her. You can still read that story at thesalemnewsonline.com. You can see her stances on many issues at upballot.com/jen-tracy.
Hewkin checks all the Republican and conservative boxes – Second Amendment, pro-life, small government, constitutional rights and more – that make him such a big favorite in the two communities. You can read more about his stances on his website, hewkinformissouri.com.
Hewkin did not face a strong Republican candidate in Dent County, and in the August primary he defeated Salem’s Lancer Blair 4,800-1,787, carrying both counties. Some say that was the election, and that the Nov. 5 general election is a mere formality. With 6,587 Republican votes cast in the primary to 735 Democrat votes, that’s hard to argue against.
I covered a lot of that part of the story in my column with Tracy, so no need to rehash it here. Just keep in mind for every 28.5-point favorite Notre Dame there can be a Northern Illinois lurking around. Just ask John Hewkin.
