1980Final results
1980 Democratic primary for Missouri House District 27
Missouri House of Representatives · Missouri
Karen Benson (D) won with 81.8% of the vote, defeating Jerry Murphy (D) by 68.3 points.
Karen BensonDemocrat · winner · incumbent
81.8%2,449
Jerry MurphyDemocrat
13.5%405
John StipancichDemocrat
3.8%113
James W. KelchnerDemocrat
0.9%26
2,993 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The candidates
Karen Benson (D)Jerry Murphy (D)
Also on the ballot: John Stipancich (Democrat), 3.8%; James W. Kelchner (Democrat), 0.9%