Tony Ribaudo is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 from 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...

, on the Democratic Party

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...

. Ribaudo was born and raised in St. Louis

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

 and attended Washington University

Washington University in St. Louis

Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university located in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1853, and named for George Washington, the university has students and faculty from all fifty U.S. states and more than 110 nations...

. In 1993, Ribaudo was an unsuccessful candidate for mayor of St. Louis. He finished third in the Democratic primary election

Primary election

A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....

 behind Freeman Bosley, Jr.

Freeman Bosley, Jr.

Freeman R. Bosley Jr. was the forty-third mayor of St. Louis , and the city's first African-American mayor.-Early life and education:...

 and Tom Villa

Tom Villa

Thomas Albert Villa is an American Democratic politician from Missouri. He is currently a member of the Missouri House of Representatives representing the Carondelet neighborhood and surrounding areas in St. Louis, Missouri....

. After narrowly winning his re-election campaign in 1994, Ribaudo did not seek re-election in 1996. In 1976, he was elected to 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...

 representing the Hill neighborhood

The Hill, St. Louis

The Hill is a mostly Italian-American neighborhood within St. Louis, Missouri, located on high ground south of Forest Park. The official boundaries of the area are Manchester Avenue on the north, Columbia and Southwest Avenues on the south, South Kingshighway Boulevard on the east, and Hampton...

. Ribaudo was re-elected nine times, and served part of the time as house majority leader

Majority leader

In U.S. politics, the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.In the federal Congress, the role differs slightly in the two houses. In the House of Representatives, which chooses its own presiding officer, the leader of the majority party is elected the Speaker of the...

. In 1989 he challenged Bob F. Griffin

Bob F. Griffin

Bob F. Griffin served as Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives from 1981 to 1995—longer than any other speaker in state history....

for Speaker of the House. After losing Griffin assigned him to a windowless office.