Kristen Radaker-Sheafer

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Kristen Radaker-Sheafer

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 8, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

John Brown University, 2010

Personal

Birthplace

Marion, Ind.

Religion

Protestant Christian

Profession

Bakery owner and operator

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Kristen Radaker-Sheafer (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Missouri's 7th Congressional District. She lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.

Radaker-Sheafer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Kristen Radaker-Sheafer was born in Marion, Indiana. She earned a bachelor's degree from John Brown University in 2010. Her career experience includes working in tech, design, marketing, advertising, social media, and as a bakery owner and operator.

Elections

2022

See also: Missouri's 7th Congressional District election, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Missouri District 7

Eric Burlison defeated Kristen Radaker-Sheafer, Kevin Craig, and Roger Rekate in the general election for U.S. House Missouri District 7 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Burlison (R)	70.9	178,592
		Kristen Radaker-Sheafer (D)	26.8	67,485
		Kevin Craig (L)	2.3	5,869
	Submit photo	Roger Rekate (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	1

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 251,947
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Missouri District 7

Kristen Radaker-Sheafer defeated John M. Woodman and Bryce Lockwood in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Missouri District 7 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kristen Radaker-Sheafer	63.3	13,680
		John M. Woodman	25.4	5,493
		Bryce Lockwood	11.2	2,430

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 21,603
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Missouri District 7

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Missouri District 7 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eric Burlison	38.2	39,443
		Jay Wasson	22.5	23,253
		Alex Bryant	17.9	18,522
		Mike Moon	8.7	8,957
		Sam Alexander	5.5	5,665
		Audrey Richards	3.0	3,095
		Paul Walker	2.9	3,028
		Camille Lombardi-Olive	1.3	1,363

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 103,326
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Derral Reynolds (R)

Libertarian primary election

Libertarian primary for U.S. House Missouri District 7

Kevin Craig advanced from the Libertarian primary for U.S. House Missouri District 7 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Craig	100.0	416

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 416
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Kristen Radaker-Sheafer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Radaker-Sheafer's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Kristen was raised in rural northeast Oklahoma, where she could watch cows grazing in the pasture from the kitchen table. In 2006, she graduated from Dewey High School and headed to Arkansas for college. She received a Bachelor's degree in Graphic and Web Design from John Brown University and began working for a tech startup in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

In 2013, Kristen married her husband Luke and moved to Joplin, MO. After spending more than 7 years working in graphic design and marketing, she pursued her dream of starting her own small business, which opened its doors in 2016. Over the past six years, her bakery has grown into a strong and successful Joplin favorite. Kristen's time in southwest Missouri has given her a strong heart for the culture and community.

It's instilled in her a passion for advocating on behalf of her friends, neighbors and community. Her desire is for Southwest Missouri to have full and accurate representation at the national level. Therefore, with the full support of her husband and two giant dogs, Eleanor "Nori" Roosevelt and Ira Glass, Kristen is running to represent the people of Missouri's 7th district.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Government accountability & Constituent Communication By: • Taking steps towards progress through small, pragmatic bills focused on a single or small set of issues. • Finding creative solutions and harnessing the ideas and creativity of the American people. Such as employing existing technology to adapt to changing circumstances or emergencies in real-time. • Outlining the pros and cons of each proposal and discussing the possible impacts with constituents in town hall meetings and ongoing discussions. • Fostering bipartisanship and goodwill and working towards practical solutions, not assigning blame. • Avoiding big omnibus bills tying unrelated legislation together which are tactics often used by congress to avoid accountability.
• Supporting Small Businesses By: • Defining ‘small business’ as independent and locally owned to differentiate from larger corporations considered to be "Small Businesses" by the SBA. • Providing guidance for first time business owners, updating user interfaces on government websites, establishing guidelines for states and localities to allocate existing funding to the smallest businesses most in need. • Tax incentives for small scale job creators, particularly in rural areas. • Focusing financial resources for the greatest ROI. $5,000 for a small business owner with 5 employees can produce greater results than $500k given to large corporations. • Introducing incentives for locally owned farms/businesses to keep their money in the local eco
• Focus on Local Issues By: • Advocating for real solutions for Missourians including: -Affordable healthcare – including mental health and addiction treatment -Preventing and ending homelessness -Funding police & fire departments to attract and retain talent • Loyalty to the people - proposing and supporting bills to help Missourians, not one party or politician. • Addressing the lack of reliable, affordable high-speed internet for all communities. • Securing digital infrastructure. Lagging behind in cyber security makes us vulnerable to potentially catastrophic attacks. • Welcoming refugees and immigrants. Legal immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers contribute to diversity and thriving communities while providing needed relief for labor sh

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Building Coalitions. Working across the aisle and developing relationships to create sustainable bipartisan policy.

Making the economy work for everyone. Creating a more equitable economy, where every hard-working American is able to afford healthy food, a safe place to live, quality healthcare, and basic necessities. A nation as wealthy as the United States shouldn't allow so many families working 40+ hours a week to live below the poverty line.

Making it easier for entrepreneurs to start small businesses by redefining what "Small Business" means and ensuring that they have access to the same benefits larger corporations already take advantage of by leveraging their existing resources.

Immigration reform. Making it significantly easier for people to enter and stay in the U.S. legally. This would largely decimate the smuggling operations making huge profits by smuggling immigrants into the country illegally. Would-be asylum seekers and those searching for a better life in this amazing country should be welcomed, while those seeking to cause harm, traffic drugs or perform other illegal acts.

Refugee resettlement. The United States is at its best when we embrace those coming from dangerous situations and help them establish roots in our communities.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

The core responsibility for any member of the U.S. House of Representatives is communication, transparency, responsiveness, and accountability to all voters - not just the ones who share their views.

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

One of the most powerful things about the U.S. House of Representatives is that it is supposed to be a true representation of the citizens of the district. It could be a farmer, car salesperson, real estate agent, stay-at-home mom, teacher, or someone of any occupation. At its best, it should be a reflection of the American people working together to solve problems and lay the groundwork for the flourishing of communities across the nation and even the world.

Representatives should be strong advocates for their constituents and open to any ideas that help us work towards a More Perfect Union.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

It can be beneficial for representatives to have some political experience, but I think the more important qualifications are living full-time in the community they represent when not in session, sincerely caring about the all the people, not just the ones they agree with, and being completely immersed in the day-to-day conversations, struggles and unique culture of their district.

Representatives should be humble, eager to listen and learn, and willing show up for their constituents.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Compromise is absolutely necessary for policymaking. In a two-party system compromise and collaboration are the only ways to create robust and and sustainable policy. No one person or one party have all the answers to dealing with the complex issues of a pluralistic and diverse country.

If the solutions to all of our problems were easy, we would have figured them out already.

We should consider opposing viewpoints and use them to polish off the rough edges of our own ideas or challenge us in areas we may overlook or be too emotionally invested in to see potential flaws

The Constitution says that all bills for raising revenue must originate in the House. What role would this power play in your priorities if elected?

I would want to take a look at all existing spending to critically examine if the money being spent is being used as effectively as it should be.

When the house is looking at raising revenue it is important to remember that hundreds of millions, billions, and trillions of dollars, are amounts most Americans, including myself, do not comprehend as real numbers in a budget. Many Americans have to check their bank accounts before buying a single gallon of milk or deciding what brand of bread they can afford that week, so the idea of having their taxes raised even a small amount while such extraordinary amounts of money are being discussed can feel tone-deaf and disconcerting, to say the least.

The House needs to look at a more holistic approach to revenue and budgeting. We know there are areas of inefficiencies, waste, fraud, and reckless spending that can all be reduced. We also know that there are necessary things that must be funded.

I'm not concerned with making congress 'fiscally conservative' or 'fiscally liberal' but it's imperative that congress works towards being 'fiscally responsible' in order to be good stewards of taxpayer money. I would propose in depth evaluation of how funds are spent with transparency and accountability to the voters, because they deserve to know how their hard earned money is being spent.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign website

Radaker-Sheafer's campaign website stated the following:

“	ACCOUNTABILITY & COMMUNICATION 1. Take small steps towards progress through small, pragmatic bills focused on a single issue or a small set of related issues. It doesn't matter how progressive a representative is if progress is completely halted. 2. Find creative solutions by harnessing the vast intellectual resources and creativity of the American people. For example, employing technological innovations to adapt to changing circumstances or emergencies in real-time. 3. Communicate with constituents the benefits and potential drawbacks of every piece of legislation by outlining the pros and cons of each proposal and discussing the possible impacts with constituents in regular town hall meetings and ongoing discussions. 4. Foster bipartisanship and goodwill by working towards practical solutions rather than assigning blame. 5. Avoid large omnibus bills tying unrelated legislation together. These bills are often used by lawmakers to avoid accountability by slipping in unpopular previsions and assuming most constituents won't pay attention. 6. Ensure proposed legislation is easy to understand and communicated clearly to constituents to encourage engagement from voters. SMALL BUSINESSES FOR THRIVING ECONOMIES 1. Clearly define small businesses as independent and locally owned establishments to differentiate from larger, established corporations still considered "Small Businesses" as currently defined by the SBA. 2. Provide better guidance for first time business owners and reduce red tape and unnecessary boundaries by focusing on updating the user interface on government websites to be more intuitive and establish guidelines for allocating existing funding to the smallest businesses to help them access resources often out of their reach. (i.e. Accounting and budgeting advice, architectural services, legal resources, marketing suggestions, help navigating local codes and requirements) 3. Tax incentives and debt forgiveness for small scale job creators, particularly in rural areas, while cutting back on financial incentives for large corporations that don't need them. 4. Focus financial resources for the greatest return on investment. $5,000 in the hands of a small business with 5-10 employees can produce far more impactful results for a business AND a community than $500,000 in the hands of a larger corporation. 5. Prioritize incentives for locally owned farms and businesses that keep their money in the local economy rather than those owned by large investment firms or international companies. 6. Find ways to replicate successful local, equitable economies throughout the country by researching and creating guidance on best practices. For example, studying cities like Joplin, Missouri that have the 2nd most minority business owners per capita in the U.S., and finding ways to replicate that success in other small to medium sized towns FOCUS ON THE SEVENTH DISTRICT 1. Giving voice to the People of Missouri's 7th Congressional District and the unique challenges we face, including: Funding for police and fire departments to be able to attract and retain talent. Affordable healthcare – including mental health and proven treatment for addiction. Incentives for small businesses, innovators, entrepreneurs and new startups in Southwest Missouri. Long term solutions for preventing and ending homelessness. 2. Maintain loyalty to constituents, not any one party or person. Supporting legislation that would benefit the residents of the 7th district regardless of the political affiliation any particular bill is associated with. 3. Address the urgent need for high-speed internet access that is reliable and affordable in all rural communities. 4. Focus on cyber security. The U.S. risks lagging behind other countries when it comes to securing its digital infrastructure. Maligned actors can cause significant damage to the U.S. with relative ease at a very low cost to them unless our potential vulnerabilities are addressed and reinforced. 5. Welcome refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers. Create an atmosphere where our district can showcase our hospitality and lead the country in resettling the legal immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers who will contribute to diversity and produce more vibrant and thriving communities. This would also help provide much needed relief to the labor shortages we face since demographic trends suggest Southwest Missouri’s retiree population has grown while the area labor force has not kept up.	”
—Kristen Radaker-Sheafer's campaign website (2022)

See also

2022 Elections

What's on the ballot? U.S. Congress U.S. Congress special elections State executives State legislatures State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards Election analysis hub

Government

Who represents me? U.S. Congress State executives State legislators State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards

Newsletters

The Heart of the Primaries The Daily Brew The Weekly Brew The Ballot Bulletin Checks and Balances Economy and Society Hall Pass Number of the Day Robe & Gavel Union Station

External links

Search Google News for this topic

Candidate

U.S. House Missouri District 7

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Personal

Facebook

LinkedIn

Footnotes

[show]

Missouri's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Josh Hawley (R)

Eric Schmitt (R)

Representatives

District 1

Wesley Bell (D)

District 2

Ann Wagner (R)

District 3

Bob Onder (R)

District 4

Mark Alford (R)

District 5

Emanuel Cleaver (D)

District 6

Sam Graves (R)

District 7

Eric Burlison (R)

District 8

Jason Smith (R)

Republican Party (8)

Democratic Party (2)