Tishaura Jones
Tishaura Oneda Jones is an American politician who served as the 47th mayor of St. Louis, Missouri from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Missouri Democratic Party, Jones previously served from 2008 to 2013 in the Missouri House of Representatives, and as Treasurer of the City of St. Louis from 2013 to 2021.
Born in St. Louis to a former city comptroller, Jones studied at Hampton University in Virginia, returning to St. Louis upon graduating in 1994. Following a failed attempt to start a restaurant that left her bankrupt, she entered nursing, graduating from the Saint Louis University College for Public Health with a Master of Health Administration in 2001 and working for Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital for two years.
A self-described progressive, Jones entered politics in 2002, when she was appointed to the Democratic Party Central Committee for St. Louis's eighth ward. In 2008, she was elected to represent Missouri's 63rd District in the state legislature, defeating independent candidate Nels Williams with 85.4 percent of the vote. She ran unopposed for re-election to the House in 2010.
In 2012, Jones ran for St. Louis Treasurer and won the general election with 77.9 percent of the vote. She was re-elected to the office in 2016 and 2020.
Jones was elected as Mayor of St. Louis in the 2021 mayoral election, narrowly defeating St. Louis Alderwoman Cara Spencer with 51.7 percent of the vote, becoming the first African-American female mayor in the city's history. In the 2025 mayoral election, a rematch of the 2021 election, Jones lost to Spencer in a landslide, garnering 35.83% of the vote.
Early life and education
Tishaura Oneda Jones was born on March 10, 1972, in St. Louis to Virvus and Laura Jones. Her father was a former comptroller for the city. She is the couple's only child. Jones graduated from Affton High School in 1990 and enrolled in Hampton University, an historically black college in Hampton, Virginia. At Hampton, she was a member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority. She graduated from the school with a Bachelor of Science in finance in 1994. In 2001, Jones earned a Master of Health Administration degree from the Saint Louis University College for Public Health. In 2015, she completed the State and Local Government program at the Harvard Kennedy School.Early career
In 1995, after graduating from Hampton University, Jones applied for a liquor license for a restaurant she was starting in the Central West End called Sugar's Place. The restaurant was unsuccessful, folding after about a year, and caused her major financial problems for years to come. In 1999, she filed for bankruptcy and faced a tax lien by the state of Missouri. Jones told The St. Louis Business Journal that her financial problems came during a "tumultuous time" in her life, as she had taken on debt from the restaurant, her father had been convicted on two counts of fraud in 1995, and her mother was dying of cancer, and said declaring bankruptcy "was the only way" to avoid financial ruin. Her lien was released in 2003, and Jones said her credit score in 2017 was in the high 700s. She said her experience with bankruptcy inspired her to create an office as treasurer that gives financial literacy instruction to St. Louis residents.From May 2001 to June 2003, Jones was an executive trainee at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital. When she ran for mayor in 2017, Steven M. Barney, who had mentored her at Cardinal Glennon, wrote that Jones did an "outstanding" job at the hospital and had "appropriate assertiveness."
Jones began her political career in 2002, when she was appointed to the Democratic Party Central Committee for St. Louis's eighth ward. Since 2004, Jones has served as the committee's serjeant-at-arms.
Missouri House of Representatives (2009–2013)
On November 4, 2008, Jones was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives over independent candidate Nels Williams to represent the state's 63rd district. There was no Republican challenger for the seat, and Jones received 85.4 percent of the vote. Her father, Virvus, managed her campaign.Jones ran unopposed in 2010 to win her second term, and became both the first African-American and the first woman appointed to serve as the Missouri House's assistant minority floor leader. In the House, she served on several committees, including the Elementary and Secondary Education Committee, the Health Insurance Committee, and the Special Standing Committee on Election Contests.
From March 2010 to June 2011, Jones also worked as the Vice President of Municipal Finance at the minority-owned, Oakland-based investment firm Blaylock Robert Van.
In February 2012, after the Missouri House passed a resolution condemning a contraceptive mandate by President Barack Obama's administration, Jones and six other female Democratic members of the House stated they were kept out of the debate. Jones said that the group "stood and waited to be recognized for two hours" but "never got a chance to speak on an issue that is unique to women." Democrat Margo McNeil argued that the incident was part of a Republican "war on women." Republican John Diehl, who was presiding over the debate, dismissed the allegation that the seven women were ignored, stating that more Democrats were given time to speak than Republicans, and saying "it would take days" to vote on a bill if every member of the House got the chance to speak.
On December 21, 2012, St. Louis Magazine included Jones on its annual "Power List", noting that "Tishaura knows how to cross the aisle. But like her father, she's also known as a blunt critic—which could make for a refreshing change in the city treasurer's office, which has been plagued by scandal and controversy in recent years."
St. Louis Treasurer (2013–2021)
Jones served as St. Louis Treasurer between January 1, 2013, and her election as mayor in April 2021.2012 Treasurer Election
In 2012, Jones ran for the position of Treasurer of St. Louis. Her father, Virvus, once again served as her campaign manager. Incumbent Larry Williams, who had been in the office since 1981 and was described by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch as "plagued by scandal nearly from his appointment", decided not to seek re-election. Jones was among four Democratic challengers in the primary election. During the campaign, she argued that Williams's administration had focused too much on parking, and said she would be more transparent about salaries and financial data and make banks more equitable. On July 26, following the Post-Dispatch editorial board's endorsement of Fred Wessels Jr. for treasurer, in which they argued Jones was not qualified enough for the position, she responded to the paper through an interview with The St. Louis American. She stated that in addition to having the same qualifications as Wessels, she additionally had more relevant experience through her work with the investment banking firm Blaylock Robert Van, a fact which the Post-Dispatch did not mention. On August 8, she won the Democratic primary, with Wessels coming in second place. On November 6, she won the general election. After winning the Democratic primary, Jones said her first step as treasurer would be to conduct an independent audit to "see where all the bodies are buried, where the ghosts are" and said the office would undergo a "total house cleaning" of office staff. She also said she would look into offshoring jobs in the treasurer's office to see if that was more cost-effective.First term (2013-2017)
Jones was sworn in on January 1, 2013, becoming the first woman to serve as treasurer. One of the "ghost" workers under Williams, Fred W. Robinson, was convicted on charges of wire fraud and submitting false timesheets and was sentenced to two years in prison. Within one month of taking office, Jones fired Robinson and four other employees who were accused of not doing their jobs and costing the city money.During her time as treasurer, Jones was credited with transforming the office from a bureaucratic seat into a position of advocacy. Koran Addo of the Post-Dispatch noted how Jones had changed the public perception of the treasurer's office and expanded its role:
As treasurer, Jones partnered with nonprofit financial literacy organization Operation HOPE, Inc. and five local banks to launch a HOPE chapter inside City Hall, the first of its kind. Operation HOPE founder and chairman John Hope Bryant, who described Jones as "my friend", said the program was "done at no direct cost to city residents, thanks to Tishaura's brilliant thinking."
In 2016, Jones spoke at a plenary session alongside Robert Greenstein and Starsky Wilson where she talked about her "firsthand experiences with social movements" following the shooting of Michael Brown and the Ferguson unrest.
2016 Treasurer Election
On August 2, 2016, Jones lost an election to become the Democratic Party's committeewoman for the 26th ward but won the uncontested Democratic primary for treasurer. She was re-elected to a second four-year term as treasurer on November 8, 2016, with 76.6 percent of the vote.Second term (2017-2021)
In 2017, KMOV reported that Jones had taken 50 trips during her first term as treasurer, including trips to attend conferences and meetings in Chicago, Las Vegas, New York City, Paris, and Washington, D.C. All the trips had been at least partially reimbursed by the city for a total of over $27,000. The report prompted calls for an investigation by two members of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen who alleged the majority of trips were taken for Jones's political benefit. Jones defended herself, stating that the trips were related to her office and denying that any of the trips were a form of kickback. Jones told KMOV "every one of my trips is well-documented and was because I am a leader on a national stage, I have been requested to come to meetings and conferences to speak, and because I have been requested to talk with other executives."At a press conference, she attacked the report and other reports on scandals as politically motivated to hurt her mayoral campaign. "They are suspicious because of all the candidates running for mayor, I alone have been singled out and subjected to these kinds of attacks," Jones said. "As treasurer, I expect people to hold me accountable for my actions. I also expect the media to be fair and tell the entire story, which has not happened thus far."
In April 2020, Jones signed a $7 million parking meter maintenance contract with a company whose CEO had donated $31,000 to her campaigns since 2013. The issue was brought to a circuit court, which ruled in favor of Jones, finding she did not violate city ordinance.