U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, left, is sparring with his Democratic challenger Lucas Kunce, right, over the timing and format of debates in their U.S. Senate race. (phots by Drew Angerer/Getty Images and Madeline Carter/Missouri Independent).

The question of when – or whether – Missouri’s U.S. Senate candidates will debate opened up the fall campaign, with incumbent Republican Josh Hawley challenging Democratic nominee Lucas Kunce to an outdoor clash without moderators and Kunce calling for five televised events.

Kunce, who is making his second run for the Senate, easily won the Democratic primary on Tuesday, while Hawley was unopposed for a second term as the Republican nominee. There will be an independent candidate, Jared Young, on the ballot under the Better Party label, as well as Libertarian W.C. Young.

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In a social media post right after the Democratic primary was called for Kunce, Hawley called on his Democratic rival  to meet him Aug. 15 after the Governor’s Ham Breakfast at the Missouri State Fair. 

“No fancy studio or moderators,” Hawley wrote. “Just the two of us on a trailer. Lincoln-Douglas style. I’ll bring the trailer. I’ll even let Kunce go first.”

Kunce did not accept the challenge but he did not refute it, either. In a response, Kunce called on Hawley to accept a debate invitation from Fox News and commit to five televised debates in all.

Connor Lounsbury, a senior adviser to Kunce’s campaign, said there is only one condition for Kunce to debate – that it be televised.

“We’re fine being on a trailer,” Lounsbury said. “Let’s just make sure a TV station can capture it.”

On Wednesday, Kunce publicly accepted an invitation from KSDK in St. Louis and KSHB in Kansas City for a moderated debate at 7 p.m. Aug. 15 at the fairgrounds in Sedalia. He also agreed to participate in two debates sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Missouri in partnership with Gray Media, owner of television stations in Cape Girardeau, Kansas City, Springfield, St. Louis and Quincy, Ill.

Lounsbury said Kunce intends to take part in the debate being staged Sept. 20 by the Missouri Press Association at its annual convention in Springfield.

The press association traditionally invites all candidates who will be on the ballot but whether any of the televised debates will include candidates other than Hawley or Kunce is uncertain. The League of Women Voters news release about the invitation states that it was sent to candidates “who won the August primary and received more than 100,000 votes.”

W.C. Young received only 2,421 votes. Jared Young is on the ballot after petitioning to form a new party and loaning his campaign $765,000 and raising another $164,000.

But his totals are only a fraction of what both Kunce and Hawley have raised. Kunce has raised $11.2 million since launching his campaign early last year, more than Hawley has raised since the start of 2023. Banked funds from earlier years gave Hawley the edge in available cash at the last report, $5.7 million to $4.2 million on hand for Kunce.

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Kunce was the first candidate at any level in Missouri to buy air time for the November election. On Tuesday, his campaign spent $100,000 for a week’s worth of ads in the Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield markets. That is in addition to $265,000 in ads during the final week of the primary.

Hawley responded with ad purchases Wednesday in central Missouri, Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield. The total was not available Thursday morning.

The KSDK/KSHB offer had a 7 p.m. Wednesday deadline for acceptance, Alicia Elsner, general manager of KSDK wrote to the Hawley and Kunce campaigns. The stations needed the time to make scheduling changes and promote the debate, she wrote.

Kunce sent his acceptance, Elsner said in response to an email from The Independent. Hawley had not yet sent a response as of 7:45 p.m., she said.

“I remain hopeful both candidates will accept by tomorrow morning,” Elsner said.

At his general election kickoff event in Ozark, Hawley accused Kunce of being afraid to debate outside a television studio without moderators.

The State Fair debate would be with “no fancy studios, no moderators, just you and me, man, mano-a-mano, Lincoln-Douglas style,” Hawley said.

The Lincoln-Douglas debates are among the most consequential events of the years immediately preceding the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln, a one-term former congressman representing the new Republican Party, debated U.S. Sen. Stephen Douglas, a Democrat, on seven occasions in 1858 as they contested Douglas’ Illinois Senate seat.

One of the candidates would open with a one-hour speech, followed by 90 minutes for the opponent and concluding with 30 minutes more for the candidate who went first.

Lincoln lost but the election made him a national figure and helped propel him to the presidency two years later.

Hawley, in Ozark, said Kunce’s record is “nutty” and he can’t cope with an in-depth discussion.

“Come defend it in front of the people of Missouri,” Hawley said. “Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid. Don’t hide behind the cameras.”

Kunce isn’t afraid, Lounsbury said. He just wants to debate in a format where voters statewide can see it, he said. 

The KSDK/KSHB offer can achieve that and what Hawley wants – a debate before a State Fair audience, Lounsbury said.

“Hawley gets the location he wants and if he wants to do it on a flatbed, have at it,” Lounsbury said.

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Rapper Nelly was arrested for alleged drug possession in Missouri on August 7, reports Fox 2 Now. Police reportedly found four ecstasy pills in the car, and he was taken into custody early this morning. He has since been released. According to the rapper’s attorney Scott Rosenblum, Nelly was collecting a jackpot from a casino, and an officer who needed to supervise the money transfer ran a background check on him. That was when they found a warrant for his arrest from a 2018 infraction for driving without proof of insurance. The officer then searched his car and reportedly found the ecstasy pills. The attorney also claims that Nelly has won significant jackpots before, as recently as last week, and did not have to go through background checks.

Rosenblum also released a statement explaining that Nelly, legal name Cornell I. Haynes Jr., has to regularly go through security, including FBI checks, to tour, writing, “Under similar circumstances, assuming there was an old warrant without any notice to the individual for no proof of insurance, any other citizen would have been told to address it and allowed to go on their way. It is also important to note that Mr. Haynes, as part of the requirements to travel internationally, is regularly asked to supply proof of no warrants. Including FBI checks. There were none. I am 100% confident this case will go nowhere. And we will be asking for an inquiry into this officer’s conduct.”

Nelly was reportedly arrested at the Hollywood Casino in St. Charles, Missouri, early Wednesday (Aug. 7) for drug possession and an insurance violation.

A source close to the situation says the hitmaker was detained at the casino — where he gambles and frequents as a performer — and was paraded through the venue in handcuffs after discovering a warrant from a six-year-old insurance infraction.

According to the New York Post, Nelly — born Cornell Haynes Jr. — was arrested around 4:45 a.m. local time at the casino after an identification verification check was run on the 49-year-old.

Missouri State Highway Patrol flagged an “outstanding warrant for lack of insurance” from a previous traffic stop, which triggered a background check and search of Nelly where officers reportedly discovered him in possession of four ecstasy pills.

Nelly was brought into the Maryland Heights Police Department and booked but has already secured his release. AP confirmed that Nelly was charged for suspected illegal drug possession.

A mugshot has since gone viral in the hours following the arrest. Nelly is yet to face the charges, which will be up to the prosecutor’s discretion. KRCG was the first outlet to report the news of Nelly’s arrest earlier on Wednesday.

However, Nelly’s attorneys have denied that he was arrested on drug possession charges in a statement to Billboard, claiming he was targeted by an “overzealous” officer. “Mr. Haynes was not charged with drug possession,” attorney Scott Rosenblum declared. “He was arrested for ‘No Proof of Insurance’ from 2018 on a warrant issued December 2023 that he received no notice. Mr. Haynes was targeted by an overzealous, out of line officer.”

Rosenblum continued: “After winning several jackpots, at a venue where Mr. Haynes frequently visits and entertains at its amphitheater; instead of just supervising the transfer of Mr. Haynes’ winnings, this officer felt compelled to needlessly run a check for warrants. The officer informed Mr. Haynes a background check was mandated when a player won over a certain amount; Mr. Haynes knew this to be untrue as he had won several jackpots for similar or greater amounts including one just a week prior without incident or a background check. Once Mr. Haynes was informed of the warrant for a No Proof of lnsurance infraction, this officer felt compelled to handcuff Mr. Haynes behind his back and parade him through the casino in front of other patrons.”

Nelly’s attorney claims a search of his client was conducted “without probable cause,” which led to an alleged “ecstasy” discovery. “This officer then conducted a search without probable cause where he claimed to have found alleged ‘ecstasy’ in Mr. Haynes’ personal property,” he added. “Under similar circumstances, assuming there was an old warrant without any notice to the individual for no proof of insurance, any other citizen would have been told to address it and allowed to go on their way. It is also important to note, that Mr. Haynes, as part of the requirements to travel internationally, is regularly asked to supply proof of no warrants. Including FBI checks. There were none. I am 100 percent confident this case will go nowhere. And we will be asking for an inquiry into this officer’s conduct.”

Nelly will become a father again later this year when his fiancée Ashanti gives birth. The couple rekindled their romance last year after dating on-and-off for about a decade from 2003 to 2013 when they went separate ways for what they thought was for good.

“The growth has been like superb, you know, like on both ends,” Ashanti told Entertainment Tonight in June. “We are both at a place where like before, sometimes we would argue and walk out, slam the door, and not talk for a few days.”

Once the baby’s born, fans can expect Ashanti and Nelly to walk down the aisle and tie the knot at a later date. Ashanti will be a first-time mother while Nelly welcomes his fifth child.