Lester Turilli Jr.
Lester Turilli Jr. was an independent candidate for governor of Missouri in 2016.[1] He was defeated in the general election on November 8, 2016.
Biography
A native of Creve Coeur, Missouri, Turilli attended Parkway North High School and earned a bachelor of business administration from Baylor University. He is an executive in two businesses owned by his family that operate routs and ziplines at Meramec Caverns. He has also been a Little League coach and served on the board of his local church.
Turilli and his wife live in Stanton, Missouri, with their three children.[2]
Education
- B.B.A., Baylor University
Elections
2016
- Main article: Missouri gubernatorial election, 2016
Turilli Jr. filed to run as an independent candidate in the 2016 election for Missouri governor. He competed in the November 8, 2016, general election with Democrat Chris Koster, Republican Eric Greitens, Libertarian Cisse Spragins, and Green Party candidate Don Fitz[1]
Eric Greitens defeated Chris Koster, Cisse Spragins, Lester Turilli, and Don Fitz in the Missouri governor election.
| Missouri Governor, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Eric Greitens |
51.29% | 1,424,730 | |
| Democratic | Chris Koster | 45.40% | 1,261,110 | |
| Libertarian | Cisse Spragins | 1.47% | 40,718 | |
| Independent | Lester Turilli Jr. | 1.07% | 29,774 | |
| Green | Don Fitz | 0.75% | 20,785 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.03% | 737 | ||
| Total Votes | 2,777,854 | |||
| Source: Missouri Secretary of State | ||||
Campaign themes
2016
- Government: "Part of the lost trust in government is due to negligent fund appropriations. Exercising frugality with the specified monies should be the expected norm. Our “Nickel Down” government spending method endorses a 5% reduction in State Budget expenditures over the course of four years."[3]
- Taxes: "My supporters and I do favor a minimum one year tax freeze on property tax, income tax, and certain sales tax. Of course, everyone would enjoy a tax reduction; however, such a move requires initial prudence."[3]
- Education: "Educators should be given consistent expectations of teaching material and insight into assessment testing. We have creative classroom solutions (such as our "AMP"--Accelerated Mentoring Program) to help teachers and to increase student achievement. We stand behind local school districts responsibly determining the curriculum to be used to educate their students. We support religious freedom and liberty for administrators, teachers, and students. We believe the Bible and Christianity should be an integral part of curriculum ... ."[3]
- Infrastructure: "Because our state is centrally located in the nation, our roads are a travel corridor to freight trucks. Using this fact, we support stiffer overage penalties for 18-wheelers violating the Federal Mandate of 80,000lbs. We advocate utilizing this "Heavy-Levy" on portions of I-44, I-70, and I-55 which can be collected through weight-scale stations to help support maintenance and to hire more personnel to run the scales. Likewise, we support increasing the number of highway patrol officers to our interstates through stiffer fines on excessive speeding (15 mph+ over speed limit), DUI’s, and other dangerous driving violations."[3]
- Energy: "Because 82% of Missouri energy is derived from coal, our state will have to make wise decisions in improving our plants. New, clean burning and efficient coal plants in Tampa, FL and Temple, TX prove that this can be done. Likewise, nuclear, natural gas, hydroelectric, and solar companies will be encouraged to expand their technology for affordability and availability for our citizens."[3]
- Abortion: "We value both the mother and the child and advocate eliminating abortion permanently from our state. Mothers need counseling, attention, care, nutrition, support, and love which should be provided through community organizations and churches."[3]
- 2nd Amendment: "The U.S. Constitution is clear in allowing Americans the right to bear arms. We are gun owners and use firearms in hunting. We encourage responsibility in gun usage, along with education."[3]
See also
External links
Footnotes
