William Lacy Clay Jr. (born July 27, 1956) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative from Missouri's 1st congressional district from 2001 to 2021. His congressional career ended after he lost in a Democratic primary to Cori Bush in 2020, after successfully defeating her in the 2018 primary. The district Clay represented is based in the city of St. Louis and includes most of northern St. Louis County (North County), including the cities of Maryland Heights, University City, Ferguson and Florissant.