Richard Hanson served as secretary of state of Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

 in 1994 following the removal from office of his predecessor, Judith Moriarty

Judith Moriarty

Judith K. Moriarty is an American politician from Missouri. She was the first woman to serve as Missouri Secretary of State....

.

A Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 from Cole County, Hanson served on an interim basis in 1994 from the time of Moriarty's removal from office by the Missouri Supreme Court following her impeachment by the Missouri House of Representatives

Missouri House of Representatives

The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 31,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections held in even-numbered years.In 1992 Missouri...

 until Governor Mel Carnahan

Mel Carnahan

Melvin Eugene "Mel" Carnahan was an American politician. A Democrat, he served as the 51st Governor of Missouri from 1993 to 2000. He died in a plane crash on the Pevely and Hillsboro, Missouri border during a campaign for the U.S...

 appointed Bekki Cook

Bekki Cook

Rebecca McDowell Cook is a politician from Missouri, USA. She served as Missouri Secretary of State from December 1994 to January 2001....

to serve until the following scheduled election for the office.