# @thekansascitystar on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/CncHI6vhDIc
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/18810863-thekansascitystar-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/thumbnails/01cbfeb563.jpg
- **Posted:** 2023-01-15T14:30:58.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Kansas City Star (@thekansascitystar) — https://gondola.cc/thekansascitystar

## Caption

Eric Turner has lived his entire life in staunchly conservative Hermitage, a rural city of about 500 people less than five miles from Missouri Gov. Mike Parson’s hometown of Wheatland.

In that time, he has only voted for a Democrat once — a good friend who was running for a local judge position. 

“If you made me tell you what I was, I’m a die-hard Republican and always will be,” Turner, 44, told The Star.

But when a citizen-driven constitutional amendment to legalize recreational marijuana statewide was put in front of voters last November, Turner voted in favor of it. Turner said he thinks he also voted for another progressive-leaning measure that expanded Medicaid coverage statewide in 2020.

In the wake of Missouri voters like Turner approving several liberal-leaning ballot measures, Republicans in the GOP-controlled Missouri General Assembly are now proposing a raft of legislation that would make it more difficult for voters to pass ballot measures that amend the state constitution. 

The Star spent four days in southwest Missouri talking with voters, party officials, political scientists, petition organizers and politicians about the conservative area’s willingness to support progressive policies at the ballot box — and what would happen if that right was taken away. 

Read what we found at the link in our bio. 

#Missouri #MOLeg #MOMarijuana #MOVoters #MissouriNews #LocalNews

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## Tags

missourinews, momarijuana, missouri, movoters, localnews, moleg

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