Showdowns for the GOP nominations for Missouri governor and attorney general begin

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri voters are set to nominate a Republican candidate for governor and other statewide offices, likely deciding the next leaders of a strongly conservative state currently without any Democratic statewide officials.

GOP gubernatorial candidates include Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe and state Sen. Bill Eigel. Former President Donald Trump endorsed all three.

Republican Gov. Mike Parson is barred from seeking reelection by term limits.

Here’s a breakdown of Missouri’s top statewide Republican primaries:

Governor

The GOP fight for the governorship appears to be between Ashcroft, who comes from a Missouri political dynasty, and Kehoe, a powerhouse in fundraising who was endorsed by Parson to be his successor.

Ashcroft has considerable name recognition after serving as secretary of state since 2017. Ashcroft’s father, John Ashcroft, served as Missouri governor, a U.S. senator and U.S. attorney general under former President George W. Bush.

As secretary of state, Ashcroft withdrew Missouri last year from a bipartisan, multistate effort aimed at ensuring the accuracy of voter rolls that has found itself in the crosshairs of conspiracy theories fueled by Trump’s false claims about the 2020 presidential election. Ashcroft has also long advocated for Missouri’s photo identification requirement for voters as a way to prevent voter fraud, although he has also maintained Missouri already had secure elections.

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