MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
It's been 10 years since this region was shaken by the shooting death of Michael Brown Jr. by a police officer in nearby Ferguson. He was 18 years old. More than a year of protests against police brutality followed, and Wesley Bell got involved. He became a Ferguson City council member, then St. Louis County prosecutor and, just this week, the Democratic nominee for Congress representing the St. Louis area. Bell defeated current U.S. Representative Cori Bush in Tuesday's primary, and he's with us now. Good morning.
WESLEY BELL: Good morning. Thanks for having me.
MARTIN: Well, thanks for coming. You're the second person to successfully challenge a member of the progressive group of Congress members known as The Squad. As you know, a lot of people are attributing your victory to outside campaign funding, including a group of donors who are particularly interested in strengthening support for the U.S.-Israel relationship. I'm talking about AIPAC. How big of a factor was that in your victory?
BELL: You know, at the end of the day, this race was decided by issues and the issues that matter to this - to folks in this region because there was - you know, there were groups coming in for and against. So everyone heard the messages from both candidates. They knew our positions. But when I was out on the polls and knocking on doors, folks would come to me and say, hey, we don't really care about all that stuff. We want someone that's going to go up there and do the job and do the work. And as a Ferguson City councilman, I've done that. As the county prosecutor now, I've done that. And that's exactly what you can expect from me as the next congressman as well.
MARTIN: Do you think that there was one major issue that kind of called the day?
BELL: I don't know if there was one. I think there were a few things. And this region has been dying a slow death. We've been losing population around the metropolitan area. The No. 1 killer of young Black boys in this region is gun violence, and that's not OK with me, and that's not OK with people in this region. And so some of those national narratives were playing, you know, on the national networks, but locally, folks cared about this region and awakening this sleeping giant that we call the St. Louis region. And they want someone who's going to address those issues, health care and food deserts, common sense gun safety laws. Those are the things that matter to folks here.
MARTIN: Was your argument to the voters that you would be more attentive to local issues than the incumbent has been? I mean, that has been the argument that she spent more time sort of filling out her national profile than attending to the specific issues of people at home. Is that your argument? Is that what you think prevailed at the end of the day?
BELL: Yeah. I think that was a big part of why - of the case that we made to voters is that this - I learned a long time ago this job - 70% of this job is showing up. And you have to hear from your constituents. You have to understand the needs of your constituents. I learned those lessons in Ferguson, and I never lost that. And so I've always been in the community. Folks know that I'm going to be here representing them. And I do think that that played a big part in this win.
MARTIN: So to that end, you know, we're talking to you 10 years to the day after Michael Brown's death. And as I think you know, that is still a real pain point for this community. As you also know, there are those who still believe that Darren Wilson, the former police officer who shot and killed Brown after a confrontation, should be prosecuted. Your predecessor's county prosecutor didn't. You did not. Can you briefly explain why not?
BELL: Well, first and foremost, the investigative body with the most resources in the world - not just the region or the state - in the world is the Department of Justice. They were on the ground days after the shooting, and they concluded that charges could not be filed. So without any new evidence, I don't know what anyone is expecting from me, from our office. And I'll be honest with you - most folks get it in this region. But it's tough when you have - when a family loses a loved one. And I learned that doing this job as the local DA for now close to six years. When a family loses a loved one, they're just not going to be satisfied unless they get justice. And I don't blame them.
And so this is a situation where we don't have the evidence. The DOJ has concluded that. Every investigative body that has investigated this case has concluded that. And it's unfortunate when you can't bring justice to a family. My heart goes out to them. And - but, you know, unfortunately, it is what it is. But we've taken this same energy to push for criminal justice reform, and I'm proud of some of the accomplishments that we have been able to do.
MARTIN: So before we let you go, you and the incumbent, Cori Bush, both rose to prominence in part from the Ferguson protest movement. You ended up on different sides. I wonder if you think that there's something to be bridged there going forward as you go into the general election. Do you think that there's a fracture there that needs to be bridged? As briefly as you can.
BELL: Well, I think after elections, there's always going to be those bridges that need to be rebuilt, if you will, and this is no different. We - I think it's important that if we care about this region that we help bring this region together. Now, I haven't heard from the congresswoman as of yet, but I hope that I do. And I certainly am willing to work with her and everyone in our district, whether they supported me or not.
MARTIN: Wesley Bell is St. Louis County's prosecuting attorney and, as of this week, the Democratic nominee in Missouri's 1st congressional district. Mr. Bell, thank you so much for joining us.
BELL: Thanks for having me, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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