Wes Rogers
American politician and attorney
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wes McCreary Rogers (born July 24, 1982) is an American politician, attorney, and small business owner who is a member of the City Council of Kansas City for the 2nd district, which covers most neighborhoods in Kansas City's Northland south of Barry Road.[1] A member of the Democratic Party, Rogers previously served two terms in the Missouri House of Representatives, representing the 18th district from 2019 to 2023.[2] On June 4, 2026, Rogers announced his candidacy for mayor of Kansas City in the 2027 election.[3][4]
Wes Rogers | |
|---|---|
Rogers in 2026 | |
| Member of the Kansas City City Council from the 2nd district | |
| Assumed office August 1, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Dan Fowler |
| Member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 18th district | |
| In office January 9, 2019 – January 4, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Lauren Arthur |
| Succeeded by | Eric Woods |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 24, 1982 |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Laura Neff-Rogers |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | University of Missouri (BA, JD) Washington University in St. Louis (MBA) |
| Occupation | Attorney, businessman |
| Website | wesforkc |
Early life and education
Rogers grew up in Platte City, Missouri, and graduated from Platte County R-3 High School. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in geography from the University of Missouri in 2003, a Juris Doctor from the same university, and a Master of Business Administration from Washington University in St. Louis in 2015.[5][6]
Legal and business career
Early in his career, Rogers worked as an assistant public defender in the Missouri State Public Defender system. He joined the Clay County Prosecutor's Office in 2008 and was appointed the county's chief deputy prosecutor in 2012, a position he held until 2013.[5] He later operated a small law practice and became a co-owner of a family business in the commercial dishwashing and cleaning-supply industry.[5] He is a member of the Missouri and Kansas bars and several local bar associations.[5]
Missouri House of Representatives
Elections
Rogers won his first seat in the November 2018 general election. He secured fifty-seven percent of the vote while his closest rival, Republican Sarah Mills, secured forty-three percent.[7] He succeeded Lauren Arthur, who had been elected to the Missouri Senate. Rogers was reelected in 2020 and did not seek a third term in 2022; he was succeeded by Eric Woods.[2]
Tenure
Rogers represented the 18th district, covering part of Clay County. He served as the ranking Democratic member of the House Legislative Oversight Committee and sat on the General Laws and Agriculture committees.[2]
Rogers sponsored legislation to legalize sports wagering and to allow college athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL); neither of his own bills passed.[2] Missouri enacted an NIL law in 2021 through a bill primarily sponsored by Wayne Wallingford, which Governor Mike Parson signed on July 13, 2021; the University of Missouri athletic department named Rogers among the legislators it thanked for supporting the measure.[8][9] During debate on a 2022 sports-wagering bill, Rogers won a floor amendment lowering the proposed wagering tax, arguing that Missouri's rate should be set below neighboring Kansas's.[2]
During Rogers's tenure, the Missouri legislature appropriated state funds toward a new Northland career and technical education center; the appropriation, reported at $30 million, was credited to several Northland legislators, including Rogers.[10][11]
Kansas City City Council
Election
Rogers was elected to the Kansas City City Council in the June 20, 2023, general election. He succeeded the term-limited Dan Fowler and took office on August 1, 2023.[1][12]
Tenure
Rogers serves on the council's Finance, Governance and Public Safety Committee, which oversees the city budget.[12] He has said his priorities include streamlining business permitting, improving streets and sidewalks, and upgrading Northland facilities such as the Line Creek Community Center.[13]
Housing and building codes
Rogers sponsored an ordinance to roll back portions of Kansas City's residential energy-efficiency building code, which the city had strengthened in 2023. The council passed the measure in a 7–6 vote in February 2026. Rogers framed it as a way to lower construction costs in an effort to build more affordable housing, telling the Kansas City Star editorial board that he was "as freaked out about climate change as anybody else" but had been persuaded that the stricter code was too costly for builders. The Home Builders Association of Greater Kansas City supported the rollback, while the Sierra Club, the Metropolitan Energy Center, and other groups opposed it. Mayor Quinton Lucas voted against the ordinance but did not veto it.[14][15]
Economic development
Rogers was among the council members who co-sponsored a 2026 ordinance authorizing negotiations toward a new downtown ballpark for the Kansas City Royals; the council approved the measure in an 11–1 vote, with Rogers in favor.[16] He also supported the council's 2025 unanimous repeal of the Kansas–Missouri "Border War Truce" on economic-development incentives, an agreement he had backed as a state legislator.[2]
2027 mayoral campaign
On June 4, 2026, Rogers announced a campaign for mayor of Kansas City in the 2027 Kansas City mayoral election, the contest to succeed Quinton Lucas, who is term-limited.[3][4] He framed his platform around public safety, affordability, and reworking the day-to-day operations of city government.[3] The other declared candidates included Mayor Pro Tem Ryana Parks-Shaw, council member Crispin Rea, finance attorney Kenda Tomes McClain, and Oak Ridge Family Social Club co-owner P. J. Guastello.[17] Kansas City's municipal elections are nonpartisan; the primary was scheduled for April 6, 2027, with the general election on June 8, 2027.[3]
Personal life
Rogers lives in Kansas City with his wife, Laura Neff-Rogers, and their three children.[5]