WASHINGTON — Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver won reelection to a U.S. House seat representing Missouri on Tuesday. Cleaver defeated Republican Sean Smith to claim his 11th term representing the Democratic-leaning 5th District in the Kansas City area. Cleaver is a Methodist minister who founded a branch of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, a civil rights group. He is a former Kansas City mayor who in 2021 co-sponsored legislation to allow college athletes to be paid for the use of their name, image and likeness. Smith served two years in the Jackson County Legislature. The Associated Press declared Cleaver the winner at 10:56 p.m. EST.