Lucas Tyree Kunce (; born October 6, 1982) is an American attorney and politician who is the director of national security at the American Economic Liberties Project. On March 9, 2021, he announced his campaign for the 2022 U.S. Senate election in Missouri, the day after Roy Blunt announced his retirement. He lost the Democratic primary to Trudy Busch Valentine. On January 6, 2023, he announced his campaign to run for Missouri's Class 1 U.S. Senate seat in 2024 against incumbent Josh Hawley.
Early life and education
Kunce was born in Hartsburg, Missouri and grew up in Jefferson City. His father worked for the Missouri Department of Conservation, while his mother retired to care for his sister, who had heart problems and underwent multiple open-heart surgeries. His family faced financial struggles as a result, eventually going bankrupt.
Kunce graduated from Jefferson City High School in 2000 as the valedictorian of his class. He went on to attend Yale University on a Pell Grant, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in classical civilization. He played for the school track team and ultimate frisbee, and joined the cheerleader team in 2003 as the first male member in the current incarnation of the team. Kunce graduated from Yale in 2004, and obtained a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Missouri School of Law. He was admitted to the Missouri Bar on September 12, 2007. In 2016, he received a Master of Laws degree from Columbia Law School.
Career
2006 Missouri House campaign
In 2006, while attending law school at the University of Missouri, Kunce ran for the Missouri State House of Representatives seat for District 113. He was defeated by the Republican incumbent Mark Bruns, with Kunce earning 44% of the vote.
Military service
In 2007, Kunce joined the United States Marine Corps as a judge-advocate (military lawyer) in the Judge Advocate division. He served a tour in Iraq and two tours in Afghanistan. After returning to the United States, he served as the International Negotiations Officer on the Joint Staff of the Pentagon, where he represented the U.S. in arms negotiations with Russia and NATO. He joined the Council on Foreign Relations in June 2017. In 2019 he wrote an opinion article for The New York Times.
Kunce left active duty in 2020 with the rank of major, joining the American Economic Liberties Project as director of national security in August. He continues to serve in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.
2022 U.S. Senate campaign
Kunce announced his run for the open U.S. Senate seat on March 9, 2021, the day after incumbent Republican Senator Roy Blunt announced he would not be seeking re-election in 2022. His candidacy received endorsements from the League of Conservation Voters, Progressive Change Campaign Committee and VoteVets. As of December 31, 2021, Kunce had raised $2.48 million, the most of all the candidates for the U.S. Senate seat in Missouri. He says that he does not accept corporate campaign donations. Throughout his campaign, he has emphasized his outsider status, advertising both his lack of political experience and poorer upbringing.
Kunce has received criticism for sparsely voting in Missouri elections, and also qualifying for a Washington, D.C. tax credit for a "primary residence" home in the city, which he has said he will not be accepting.
In March 2022, Kunce reported that his campaign's Independence, MO office was burglarized, with "tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment and other resources" reported missing. In July 2022, Kunce's campaign mailed a cease-and-desist letter to primary opponent Trudy Busch Valentine for allegedly airing advertisements "containing these deliberate lies with actual malice toward Mr. Kunce in an effort to deceive Missouri voters."
Kunce lost the Democratic primary by a margin of 5% to Anheuser-Busch heiress Trudy Busch Valentine on August 2, 2022. He later endorsed Busch Valentine and campaigned on her behalf.
2024 U.S. Senate campaign
On January 6, 2023, Kunce announced his second run for U.S. Senate in a bid to unseat one-term incumbent Josh Hawley.
Political positions
Kunce is described as a progressive politician. He has voiced his support for "repealing or revising" Section 230. Kunce has said that he would have voted for the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and For the People Act. He supports public Social Security. He opposes the death penalty.