Kansas farm leader backs Willett in Atchison County visit

A longtime Kansas agriculture leader threw his support behind Nathan Willett in Atchison County, putting Blake Hurst’s name behind a candidate already courting farm voters across northwest Missouri. The endorsement carries weight in a county that still counts 430 farms and 273,607 acres of farmland, with corn, soybeans and cattle among its leading commodities.

Hurst, a longtime Atchison County farmer from Tarkio, Missouri, met with Willett as the congressional candidate continued building support among rural voters before the Aug. 4 election. The Missouri Department of Agriculture says Hurst raises corn and soybeans on Hurst Farms, while his wife, Julie Hurst, and their daughter run the greenhouse side of the business through Hurst Greenery.

His voice in farm politics reaches far beyond a single county line. Hurst served as Missouri Farm Bureau president from 2010 to 2020, giving his endorsement added weight among producers who watch commodity markets, weather risk and federal policy closely. Missouri Farm Bureau says the organization has grown to more than 130,000 members, a reminder of the network behind Hurst’s support.

Willett has worked to frame himself as a candidate with deep rural roots. His campaign and local reporting describe him as a seventh-generation Missourian with family farming and ranching ties in Atchison County, and his family farms in Atchison, Clay, Platte and Ray counties. In late May, his campaign announced an Agriculture Steering Committee made up of agricultural leaders, producers and advocates from across North Missouri, with Hurst listed among those backing him.

The campaign’s rural push has already included a stop in Rock Port on May 4, where more than 20 people attended an ice cream social to hear Willett discuss his Kansas City city-council background and his plans for Atchison County if elected. Willett also picked up a Missouri Farm Bureau PAC endorsement announced June 17, another signal that farm organizations are lining up behind his candidacy.

For Atchison County voters, the value of Hurst’s backing will be measured less by campaign symbolism than by policy results. Farmers here will be looking for answers on commodity prices, input costs, water, trade, crop insurance and rural infrastructure, the issues that can decide whether a family operation stays profitable or falls behind. In a county where agriculture still drives the landscape and the economy, endorsements matter most when they point toward concrete help in the field, not just applause at the county line.