MU College Democrats gathered on Zoom for their first meeting of the academic year with Yinka Faleti, the Democratic nominee for Missouri Secretary of State joining the meeting to speak to the organization about his history and vision for Missouri. President Emily Lower discussed club plans ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
“People talk about our young people being the future. I say you are the present,” Faleti said. “This democracy will not get better without you; our state will not get better without you.”
Faleti compared Republican Secretary of State incumbent John “Jay” Ashcroft to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who narrowly won the governor’s race in 2018 following allegations of voter suppression. Faleti mentioned that Ashcroft publicly opposed Missouri’s limited vote by mail measure that passed in May. Faleti went on to say that the Secretary of State is “supposed to be a passionate advocate for the voters, not a wallflower,” when asked about Ashcroft’s response to the pandemic.
When asked how Faleti would deal with the Republican supermajority in the Missouri state legislature, Faleti answered that as Secretary of State, he would have the power to distribute the funding given to Missouri by the federal government’s CARES Act to help staff local elections, pay poll workers and keep Missouri elections equitable. Faleti encouraged MU College Democrats to vote “No” on Amendment 3 in the November election to “help change the tide in the Republican supermajority.”
Faleti issued a call to action, saying “We need your thoughts and prayers. We need your votes… The third thing we need is your money. We need your money because it takes resources to run this campaign.” He profusely thanked the club for their work registering voters at Speakers Circle in recent weeks and thanked Lower for the energy the organization brought to the table.
Faleti was born in Lagos, Nigeria and immigrated to the United States at the age of seven. Faleti grew up in poverty, with his family moving from New York, to Virginia, to Florida, to Mississippi and to Texas throughout his childhood. He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, going on to serve as a combat arms officer in tank units for over six years.
After retiring from the Army, Faleti moved to St. Louis to receive his law degree from Washington University St. Louis, eventually becoming a state prosecutor and focusing on justice for victims of sexual abuse, assault and burglary. Faleti moved on to become the senior vice president of United Way of Greater St. Louis, then served as executive director of Forward Through Ferguson nonprofit before stepping aside to enter the race for Secretary of State of Missouri.
_Edited by Joy Mazur | jmazur@themaneater.com_
