--- title: Son, Daughter Oppose Father's Run for Missouri House Over Anti-Semitic Opinions description: Steve West, a candidate for the Missouri state House, espoused homophobic, anti-Semitic, and racist rhetoric on his radio show. canonical: https://time.com/5442028/son-daughter-oppose-father-election/ author: Tara Law article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-11-01T17:37:57.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T21:54:43.403Z article:section: Politics og:title: Son and Daughter Publicly Oppose Father's Candidacy for State House Over Anti-Semitic, Racist Opinions og:description: 'My dad’s a fanatic. He must be stopped,' son Andy West said og:url: https://time.com/5442028/son-daughter-oppose-father-election/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7582965c62c6234a/69893e0c7cdbac7f8bd5e53a/missouri-state-capital-building.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2120 og:image:height: 1193 og:image:alt: missouri-state-capital-building og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Son and Daughter Publicly Oppose Father's Candidacy for State House Over Anti-Semitic, Racist Opinions twitter:description: 'My dad’s a fanatic. He must be stopped,' son Andy West said twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7582965c62c6234a/69893e0c7cdbac7f8bd5e53a/missouri-state-capital-building.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Son and Daughter Publicly Oppose Father's Candidacy for State House Over Anti-Semitic, Racist Opinions > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Nov 1, 2018 5:37 PM UTC  Missouri state capitol building dome in Jefferson City, Missouri. Missouri state capitol building dome in Jefferson City, Missouri. Stephen Emlund—Getty Images/iStockphoto  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Nov 1, 2018 5:37 PM UTC The son and daughter of a candidate for Missouri’s state legislature have a message for the public – don’t vote for their dad. After Steve West clinched the nomination for Missouri House District 15 in June, news emerged of homophobic, anti-Semitic, Islamophobic and racist rhetoric he released on his radio show and website, according to the [Kansas City ](https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/election/article220812270.html)[_Star_](https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/election/article220812270.html)_._ Emily and Andy West reached out to the _Star_ to oppose her father’s candidacy this week. Emily West said she decided to speak out against her father’s candidacy after she noticed that the community was littered with his campaign posters. “A lot of his views are just very out there,” she said. “He’s made multiple comments that are racist and homophobic and how he doesn’t like the Jews.” > [](https://twitter.com/J%5FHancock/status/1057624950184534016) Her brother, Andy West, also told the _Star_ that he is concerned that electing his father would “legitimize him.” “My dad’s a fanatic. He must be stopped,” Andy West said. “His ideology is pure hatred. It’s totally insane.” Steve West denied being anti-Semitic in an interview with the _Star_ on Sunday. He said that his children are biased against him because of his ex-wife’s influence. “I subscribe to our Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal,” he said. West had said on his radio show, _The Hard Truth with Jack Justice_, on Oct. 15 that he feels that he thinks the alliance with Israel has “been giving us gay marriage, pornography, abortion.” “This is how they corrupt a Christian nation, because they are an anti-Christ people,” West said. West did not immediately respond to a request for comment from TIME. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5442028/son-daughter-oppose-father-election/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5442028/son-daughter-oppose-father-election/"},"headline":"Son and Daughter Publicly Oppose Father's Candidacy for State House Over Anti-Semitic, Racist Opinions","datePublished":"2018-11-01T17:37:57.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T21:54:43.403Z","description":"'My dad’s a fanatic. 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