Crystal Quade (born August 16, 1985) is an American

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as Minority Leader in the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

, representing the 132nd district. She is a member of the Democratic Party. On July 9, 2023, Quade announced her candidacy in the

2024 Missouri gubernatorial election The 2024 Missouri gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2024, to elect the governor of Missouri, concurrently with the 2024 United States presidential election, 2024 U.S. presidential election, as well as United States Senate elect ...

. On August 6, 2024, she won the Democratic nomination, but lost to Republican nominee

Mike Kehoe Michael Leo Kehoe (born January 17, 1962) is an American politician serving as the 58th governor of Missouri since 2025. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 48th lieutenant governor of Missouri from 2018 to 2025. Kehoe previousl ...

in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Education and early career

Quade was the first person in her immediate family to graduate from high school. She graduated from

Missouri State University Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerly Southwest Missouri State University, is a public university in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, it is the state's second-largest u ...

with a bachelor's degree in social work. Quade developed a strong interest in politics after taking a college course in policy, and after graduating from college, Quade worked as a legislative staff member for then-

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

Claire McCaskill Claire Conner McCaskill (; born July 24, 1953) is an American former politician who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Missouri from 2007 to 2019 and as State Auditor of Missouri, state auditor of Missouri from 1999 to ...

. Prior to being elected to a seat in the

, Quade was the former chapter services director of Care to Learn, a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

that provides funding to address health, hunger, and hygiene needs of schoolchildren in multiple Missouri public school districts.

Legislative career

Elections

In 2016, then-Missouri State Representative Charlie Norr did not seek re-election. Two Democrats, two

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, and one

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

filed to run in the 2016 race in the 132nd Missouri state representative district. Quade defeated Bob Sweere in the Democratic primary to win the Democratic nomination, and Quade defeated Republican nominee Thomas Quinn and Libertarian nominee Chris Burros by receiving 5,215 votes to Quinn's 4,243 votes to Burros's 521 votes. In 2018, Quade ran for re-election in the 132nd Missouri state representative district, winning the Democratic primary unopposed and running against Republican nominee Sarah Semple in the general election. Quade was re-elected by receiving 5,383 votes to Semple's 2,982 votes. Quade was endorsed by Missouri

AFL-CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national trade union center that is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 61 national and international unions, together r ...

in her run for Governor.

Tenure

As a state legislator, Quade serves on the Budget Committee and the Committee on Government Efficiencies, as well as the Missouri General Assembly's Joint Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect. In September 2017, less than a full year after being sworn into office, Quade was elected vice chairperson of the minority caucus of the Missouri House of Representatives by her Democratic colleagues. Following the 2018 state legislative elections in Missouri, Quade was elected Minority Leader of the Missouri House of Representatives for the 2019 Missouri legislative session.

Personal life

Quade and her husband Kevin live in

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

with their three children.

Electoral history

References

External links

Crystal Quade for Governor
campaign website
Representative Crystal Quade
legislative website , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Quade, Crystal 1985 births 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the Missouri General Assembly Candidates in the 2024 United States elections Democratic Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives Living people Missouri State University alumni Politicians from Springfield, Missouri Women state legislators in Missouri