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Deb Lavender, Justin Arnold and Sheila Burkett each won seats with at least 27% of the more than 13,396 ballots cast.

Councilman Al Rheinnecker, the lone incumbent in the race, came in fourth place with 16%. 

The election in Kirkwood comes amid what voters and candidates have said is a crossroads for the historic bedroom suburb. And it drew a high turnout, candidates said.

"I feel vindicated in the message that we were sending," Arnold said, "which is that we were going to be responsive to the people and make decisions to make sure Kirkwood has a sustainable future so that families 20 years from now have the same benefits that mine did."

The city's sales taxes have plateaued since 2025. Costs have risen, including for its city-owned water and electric utilities. And several voters have said they lost confidence in city officials after Kirkwood Electric went $13 million over budget.

The three winners Tuesday night will join four incumbents in key upcoming decisions including hiring a new city administrator and considering whether to sell Kirkwood's water system to a private utility or figure out a way to fund as much as $90 million in needed repairs over the next decade.

Fixing the city's finances was part of all four candidates' platforms in the run-up to the election, and all four called for a citywide vote to determine whether the city should hold on to its water utility, though three candidates said the city should sell its utilities if they can't pay for themselves. 

Rheinnecker, a retired business executive, had said he helped uncover Kirkwood's financial issues since his election two years ago. 

Lavender, a former state representative, said she would bring experience on the Missouri House Budget Committee to Kirkwood. 

Arnold, a government relations attorney, touted a plan to create a public financial dashboard to boost transparency. 

Burkett, who owns a digital consultancy firm, said she would bring technological and business acumen to the council. She was also the lone candidate to take a public position in favor of the city keeping its water utility and finding ways to fund it. 

Tuesday night, Arnold said he hopes the new city council can restore residents' trust in city government.

"What we’ve heard and felt over the last year meeting with people is they felt like the city really needs to do a better job in communicating and providing information and responding to what residents want," he said. "And I think today they really sent a message that that’s what they want in their government."

Burkett said she hoped the council could work together with a new city administrator to "make sure we're financially strong and set the city up for the next 20 years." 

She said the winning candidates benefitted from a higher turnout than in past years. 

"We were able to get people who had disengaged to come out to vote," she said. "They were concerned that a city they thought was thriving turned out to be failing and they want a new council to make sure the city is back on the right track." 

Lavender, who led Tuesday's election with 29% of the vote, said she was impressed by Arnold and Burkett "and the new direction we may be able to help Kirkwood move forward in." Voters, she said, were motivated by concerns and questions about the city's fiscal challenges. 

"They were looking forward to having people committed to transparency and moving the city forward," Lavender said.