# Fred Wellman **Fred Wellman** is a Missouri Democrat who defeated Republican Rep. Ann Wagner in **Missouri's 2nd Congressional District** on November 3, 2026, 51 percent to 46 percent (St. Louis Public Radio; KOMU reported 51.1 to 46.2 percent). Wagner had held the St. Louis-area seat since 2013, and Wellman's is the first Democratic win in the district since Joan Kelly Horn won it in 1990 (St. Louis Public Radio, KMOV). A retired Army officer, Wellman is a former executive director of the [[Lincoln Project]] and hosts "On Democracy," a podcast on the MeidasTouch network. > [!success] Election result > St. Louis Public Radio, KOMU and KMOV reported on November 3, 2026 that Wellman had won, a Democratic pickup; Wagner called him to concede late that night (St. Louis Public Radio). The reports do not name which decision desk called the race. Vote totals are unofficial until Missouri certifies the result. Full race context: [[MO-02-2026]]. Live coverage: [[2026 Midterms Live - Election Results War Room]]. ## Background - **Army officer.** He served more than 20 years in the U.S. Army (St. Louis Public Radio, VoteVets, St. Louis Labor Tribune). He is a West Point graduate who deployed to Iraq more than once (VoteVets, Labor Tribune); VoteVets describes him as an aviation officer who earned his Ranger tab and a master's degree from Harvard's Kennedy School between deployments. - **ScoutComms.** After retiring from the Army he founded ScoutComms, a firm that works with veterans and military families (VoteVets, Labor Tribune). - **Pandemic field hospital.** During the COVID-19 pandemic he helped run a field hospital in New York City supporting NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (VoteVets, Labor Tribune). - **Lincoln Project.** He joined the [[Lincoln Project]], the group of anti-Trump Republicans and former Republicans, as a senior adviser on veterans' affairs and later served as its executive director (St. Louis Public Radio, VoteVets, Labor Tribune). - **Media.** He hosts the "On Democracy" podcast on the MeidasTouch network (St. Louis Public Radio, Labor Tribune). St. Louis Public Radio reported that he built a large following on X criticizing Trump. - **Home.** He lives in Wildwood, in St. Louis County (St. Louis Public Radio, VoteVets). ## The 2026 campaign - **Launch.** He entered the race in October 2025, saying, "I dedicated 22 years to serving our nation in the Army," and criticizing Wagner's vote for the [[Big Beautiful Bill]]: "The 'she's gotta go' moment came when she voted to cut taxes for multimillionaires like herself" (St. Louis Public Radio). Wagner's campaign called him "an out of touch lackey who had to file for bankruptcy," a past bankruptcy Wellman had alluded to in his first campaign ad, St. Louis Public Radio reported. - **Primary.** He won the August 2026 Democratic primary over Joan VonDras by about three points (St. Louis Public Radio); Ballotpedia lists the result as 45.8 percent to 43.0 percent. - **Message.** He ran on workers' rights, a higher federal minimum wage, paid family leave and equal pay, and on restoring [[Affordable Care Act]] subsidies and reversing [[Medicaid]] cuts, with universal coverage as a long-term goal (St. Louis Public Radio). He said 19 labor unions that had sat out the previous two cycles backed him (St. Louis Public Radio). - **The Iran war.** He criticized Wagner for supporting the [[Iran War 2026]], said Trump had no firm strategy for starting it, and called for Congress to have to approve such military action (St. Louis Public Radio). - **The map.** The race was run on Missouri's 2022 congressional map. Republicans redrew the state's districts in 2025 to target the Kansas City seat, but the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against using that map in 2026; the 2025 version would have been more favorable to Wagner (St. Louis Public Radio). See [[Redistricting Timeline 2025-2026]]. - **Victory.** "This is truly a revolt, a revolt against the status quo," he told supporters (St. Louis Public Radio). On X he wrote, "I'm going to do what the job title says: represent the people. All of you" (KOMU). KOMU reported that his win gives Democrats three of Missouri's eight House seats. ## Connections - [[MO-02-2026]] — the race he won - [[Lincoln Project]] — anti-Trump political group he led as executive director - [[VoteVets]] — veterans' political group that endorsed him - [[Redistricting Timeline 2025-2026]] — Missouri's 2025 redraw and why it was not used in 2026 - [[Iran War 2026]] — the war he campaigned against - [[2026 House Races Hub]] — every competitive House race - [[2026 Midterms Live - Election Results War Room]] — election-night coverage ## Sources - [St. Louis Public Radio — Wellman topples Wagner to represent Missouri's 2nd Congressional District](https://www.stlpr.org/government-politics-issues/2026-11-03/wellman-topples-wagner-represent-missouris-2nd-congressional-district) - [KOMU — Missouri Democrat flips 2nd Congressional District seat](https://www.komu.com/news/elections/missouri-democrat-flips-2nd-congressional-district-seat/article_ed8456ba-4278-42d4-bc59-f11cb422b1b3.html) - [KMOV — Fred Wellman unseats Ann Wagner](https://www.firstalert4.com/2026/11/04/fred-wellman-unseats-ann-wagner/) - [Missouri Independent — Democrat Fred Wellman ousts Republican Ann Wagner in Missouri congressional upset](https://missouriindependent.com/2026/11/03/democrat-fred-wellman-ousts-republican-ann-wagner-in-missouri-congressional-upset/) - [St. Louis Public Radio — Podcast host and Democrat Fred Wellman runs for Ann Wagner's congressional seat](https://www.stlpr.org/government-politics-issues/2025-10-01/podcast-host-and-democrat-fred-wellman-runs-for-ann-wagners-congressional-seat) - [St. Louis Public Radio — Democratic candidate Wellman chides Rep. Wagner for her support of Iran war](https://www.stlpr.org/government-politics-issues/2026-10-08/democratic-candidate-wellman-chides-rep-wagner-for-her-support-of-iran-war) - [VoteVets — VoteVets endorses Fred Wellman](https://votevets.org/press-releases/votevets-endorses-fred-wellman-for-missouris-second-congressional-district) - [St. Louis Labor Tribune — Fred Wellman wins Democratic primary](https://labortribune.com/fred-wellman-wins-democratic-primary-for-missouris-2nd-congressional-district/) - [Ballotpedia — Frederick Wellman](https://ballotpedia.org/Frederick_Wellman)