Former Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes (D-MO) is going to challenge northwest Missouri Congressman Sam Graves (R-MO) for his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The formal announcement came in St. Joseph , where Barnes grew up. It comes on the heels of Democrat Barnes’ meetings with several U.S. House leaders, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Graves is a four-term Republican Congressman who first won the seat in the 2000 election.