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Mike Parson
Mike Parson (Republican Party) was the Governor of Missouri. He assumed office on June 1, 2018. He left office on January 13, 2025.
Parson (Republican Party) ran for re-election for Governor of Missouri. He won in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Parson was born in 1955 in Wheatland, Missouri. He attended the University of Maryland and the University of Hawaii. Parson served six years in the U.S. Army and was the Sheriff of Polk County, Missouri from 1993 to 2005. [1][2]
Parson served in the Missouri House of Representatives from 2005–2011 and in the Missouri Senate from 2011–2017. He ran for lieutenant governor in 2016, defeating Russ Carnahan (D) 55.2%-40.0%. Parson became governor after Eric Greitens (R) resigned on May 29, 2018, amid investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct and misuse of voter files during the 2016 election.[3][4] Parson did not publicly comment on the allegations.[5] Parson defeated Nicole Galloway (D) 57.1%-40.7% in the 2020 gubernatorial election.
As governor, Parson's priorities included state infrastructure and workforce development.[4] Parson approved $2.8 billion of the state's 2024 budget to widen I-70, saying, "To those who say we can’t afford it, I say we can’t afford not to." [6] In 2020, Parson signed executive orders moving the Division of Workforce Development and the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center under the Department of Higher Education. Parson said he wanted "to make substantial changes to the state government, so we can be more [efficient] and really deliver for the people of Missouri."[7] In 2019, Parson signed HB 126, a bill prohibiting abortion after eight weeks of pregnancy. He said, "As Governor, I am honored to lead a state that is committed to standing up for those without a voice and will continue to fight for the unborn."[8]
Some groups of Republican state legislators, including the Missouri Freedom Caucus, opposed some of Parson's legislative priorities. The Kansas City Star's Kacen Bayloss wrote in January 2024 that Parson's "legislative agenda and budget priorities...are under threat amid infighting among Republican lawmakers."[9] Parson supported a child care tax credit bill that advanced from the state House but was opposed by a faction of Republicans in the Senate. Parson said, "I think you see over the last few years, even with the young ranks of your parties, of what's going on internally, these divisions and these caucuses and all these things are changing place," and that, "You had a handful of people that stopped that bill from happening, just more out of spite than anything."[4]
Biography
Born September 17, 1955, in Wheatland, Missouri, Parson graduated from Wheatland High School in 1973. He served six years in the U.S. Army in the 1970s and worked as law enforcement for 22 years beginning in the 1980s. Parson was elected sheriff of Polk County in 1992 and served until 2005 when he became a member of the Missouri House of Representatives.[10]
Political career
Governor of Missouri (2018 - 2025)
Parson was sworn in as governor of Missouri following the resignation on May 29, 2018, of Eric Greitens (R) amid investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct and misuse of voter files during the 2016 election.[11]
Lieutenant Governor of Missouri (2017-2018)
Parson was elected the lieutenant governor of Missouri on November 8, 2016. He assumed office on January 9, 2017.[12]
Missouri State Senate (2011-2017)
Parson is a former member of the Missouri State Senate, representing District 28. He was first elected to the Senate in 2010 and served as Majority Caucus Whip in his first term.
Missouri House of Representatives (2005-2011)
Parson is a former member of the Missouri House of Representatives, representing District 133. He was elected in 2004 and served until joining the state Senate in 2011. During his tenure as a state representative, he served as chairman of the House Rules Committee.[10]
| Click [show] to view Parson's state House of Representatives committee assignments | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Elections
2024
- See also: Missouri gubernatorial election, 2024
Mike Parson was not able to file for re-election due to term limits.
2020
See also: Missouri gubernatorial election, 2020
Missouri gubernatorial election, 2020 (August 4 Republican primary)
Missouri gubernatorial election, 2020 (August 4 Democratic primary)
General election
General election for Governor of Missouri
The following candidates ran in the general election for Governor of Missouri on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Mike Parson (R) | 57.1 | 1,720,202 |
 | Nicole Galloway (D) | 40.7 | 1,225,771 | |
 | Rik Combs (L)  | 1.6 | 49,067 | |
 | Jerome H. Bauer (G) | 0.6 | 17,234 | |
 | Theodis Brown Sr. (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 5 | |
| Arnie Dienoff (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 4 | ||
| Martin Lindstedt (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 4 | ||
| Total votes: 3,012,287 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Governor of Missouri
Nicole Galloway defeated Eric Morrison, Jimmie Matthews, Antoin Johnson, and Robin Van Quaethem in the Democratic primary for Governor of Missouri on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Nicole Galloway | 84.6 | 455,203 |
 | Eric Morrison | 6.0 | 32,403 | |
| Jimmie Matthews | 3.8 | 20,586 | ||
 | Antoin Johnson | 3.8 | 20,254 | |
| Robin Van Quaethem | 1.8 | 9,481 | ||
| Total votes: 537,927 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- La'Ondrill Brown (D)
- Edward Thurman (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Governor of Missouri
Incumbent Mike Parson defeated Saundra McDowell, James Neely, and Raleigh Ritter in the Republican primary for Governor of Missouri on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mike Parson | 74.9 | 511,566 |
 | Saundra McDowell | 12.4 | 84,412 | |
 | James Neely | 8.7 | 59,514 | |
 | Raleigh Ritter | 4.0 | 27,264 | |
| Total votes: 682,756 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Green primary election
Green primary for Governor of Missouri
Jerome H. Bauer advanced from the Green primary for Governor of Missouri on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jerome H. Bauer | 100.0 | 862 |
| Total votes: 862 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Libertarian primary election
Libertarian primary for Governor of Missouri
Rik Combs advanced from the Libertarian primary for Governor of Missouri on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Rik Combs | 100.0 | 4,171 |
| Total votes: 4,171 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
- Main article: Missouri lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2016
Parson filed to run as a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor of Missouri in the 2016 election. He won the Republican nomination in the August 2 primary election and competed in the November 8 general election with U.S. Congressman Russ Carnahan (D), who also won his party's nomination, Libertarian Steven Hedrick, who was unopposed, Green Party candidate Jennifer Leach, and write-in candidate Jake Wilburn.
Parson had also been identified as a potential candidate for governor in the 2016 election.[13] Parson joined the race but later announced that he would instead run for lieutenant governor in 2016. He defeated attorney and former Club for Growth chairwoman Bev Randles and AC Dienoff in the Republican primary election for lieutenant governor on August 2, 2016.[14]
Mike Parson defeated Russ Carnahan, Steven Hedrick, Jennifer Leach, and Jake Wilburn in the Missouri lieutenant governor election.
| Missouri Lieutenant Governor, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Mike Parson |
55.18% | 1,262,751 | |
| Democratic | Russ Carnahan | 39.99% | 915,221 | |
| Libertarian | Steven Hedrick | 2.48% | 56,804 | |
| Green | Jennifer Leach | 2.33% | 53,273 | |
| Write-in | Jake Wilburn | 0.02% | 405 | |
| Total Votes | 2,288,454 | |||
| Source: Missouri Secretary of State | ||||
Mike Parson defeated Bev Randles and AC Dienoff in the Missouri Republican primary for lieutenant governor.
| Missouri Republican primary for lieutenant governor, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Mike Parson |
51.50% | 331,367 |
| Bev Randles | 43.85% | 282,134 |
| AC Dienoff | 4.64% | 29,872 |
| Total Votes (3214 of 3214 precincts reporting) | 643,373 | |
| Source: Missouri Secretary of State | ||
| Mike Parson Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| 1/15/2016 | 10/1/2015-12/31/2015 | $907,188.21 | $211,534.76 | $(92,838.87) | $1,025,884.10 | ||||
| 4/15/2016 | 1/1/2016-3/31/2016 | $1,025,884.10 | $125,088.02 | $(79,402.41) | $1,071,569.71 | ||||
| Second quarter | 4/1/2016-6/30/2016 | $1,071,569.71 | $225,809.13 | $(503,124.12) | $794,384.01 | ||||
| Pre primary | 7/1/2016-7/21/2016 | $794,384.01 | $142,160.15 | $(562,742.48) | $338,707.0 | ||||
| 30 days after primary | 9/2/2016 | $338,707.08 | $391,839.57 | $(656,169.23) | $72,334.01 | ||||
| October quarterly report | 10/17/2016 | $72,334.01 | $538,872.55 | $(95,923.76) | $501,066.50 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $1,635,304.18 | $(1,990,200.87) | ||||||||
2014
- See also: Missouri State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for the Missouri State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 5, 2014, followed by a general election on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 25, 2014. Incumbent Mike Parson was unopposed in the Republican primary and was unopposed in the general election.[15][16]
2010
- See also: Missouri State Senate elections, 2010
On November 2, 2010, Parson won election to the Missouri State Senate.[17][18]
| Missouri State Senate, District 28 General election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Mike Parson (R)
|
47,380 | |||
| Bennie Hatfield (C) | 9,213 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Parson ran unopposed for District 133 of the Missouri House of Representatives.[19]
Parson raised $100,345 for his campaign.[20]
| Missouri House of Representatives, District 133 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Mike Parson (R) | 14,325 | 100.0% | ||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Mike Parson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign website
Parson's campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
Missouri is moving forward under the leadership of Governor Parson. His first year in office has seen the state economy create over 35,000 new jobs. Bunge, Bayer, Briggs & Stratton, CVS, Nucor Steel, Google and others are investing in Missouri and creating new opportunities for Missourians. With record lows in unemployment, more people are going back to work in Missouri. Wages are on the rise. And Missouri was named the top small business wage growth state in the nation. More Missourians are keeping their hard-earned money because the legislature passed and Governor Parson signed the largest income tax cut in Missouri history. From Day One, Governor Parson has been laser-focused on workforce development and infrastructure. The governor knows an educated workforce is key to moving Missouri forward and is focused on ensuring Missouri workers have the skills to compete for jobs in the modern global economy. Governor Parson spearheaded a bold plan, that when fully implemented will address over $1 Billion of Missouri’s serious infrastructure needs, all in need of critical need of repair or replacement. By improving Missouri’s infrastructure, Governor Parson’s policies are helping increase access to transporting goods throughout Missouri. Leveraging the state’s rivers, interstates, highways and airports, Missouri will be able to expand into new trade markets around the United States and the world.[21] |
” |
| —Mike Parson's campaign website (2020)[22] | ||
2016
Parson's campaign website stated that his priorities were advocating for agriculture legislation, reducing firearms regulation, restricting access to abortion, decreasing taxes, and decreasing government spending.[23]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.
Noteworthy events
On September 23, Parson announced that he and his wife had tested positive for coronavirus.[24]
Ballot measure activity
The following table details Parson's ballot measure stances available on Ballotpedia:
| Ballot measure support and opposition for Mike Parson | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ballot measure | Year | Position | Status |
| Missouri Amendment 3, Marijuana Legalization Initiative (2022) | 2022 | Opposed[25] |  Approved |
| Missouri Amendment 5, Department of the National Guard Amendment (2022) | 2022 | Supported[26] | Approved |
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Parson and his wife, Teresa, have two children and six grandchildren.[10]
See also
2020 Elections
| Missouri | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ National Governors Association, "Gov. Mike Parson," accessed February 12, 2025
- ↑ Missouri House of Representatives, "Representative Mike Parson," accessed February 12, 2025
- ↑ KSHB, "Lt. Gov. Mike Parson will take over after Greitens resignation," May 29, 2018
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 KOMU, "'We need to do a better job': Gov. Parson reflects on time in office ahead of Election Day," October 13, 2024
- ↑ Columbia Missourian, "Lieutenant governor says he's ready if Greitens is removed," May 22, 2018
- ↑ KOMU, "Parson's State of the State emphasizes widening of I-70, continuation of Teacher Baseline Salary program," January 18, 2025
- ↑ Komu, "Parson announces restructuring of agencies to highlight workforce development," November 18, 2020
- ↑ CNN, "Judge blocks Missouri 8-week abortion ban," August 27, 2025
- ↑ Kansas City Star, "As Missouri Gov. Mike Parson enters final year, his political legacy remains uncertain," January 24, 2024
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Missouri Governor Michael L. Parson, "ABOUT THE GOVERNOR," accessed June 3, 2021
- ↑ KSHB, "Lt. Gov. Mike Parson will take over after Greitens resignation," May 29, 2018
- ↑ Missourinet.com, "Greitens inaugural speech warmly embraced by supporters," January 9, 2017
- ↑ Fox2Now, "Report: State Sen. Parson running for governor," April 10, 2015
- ↑ Steve Kraske, The Kansas City Star, "GOP source: Mike Parson will switch from governor's race to lieutenant governor," July 24, 2015
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "All Results - State of Missouri - Primary Election - August 5, 2014," accessed August 26, 2014
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "Certified Candidate List - Primary Election," accessed July 24, 2014
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "Official Election Returns - State of Missouri Primary Election - 2010 Primary Election," accessed December 19, 2014
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "Official Election Returns - State of Missouri General Election - November 2, 2010 General Election," accessed December 19, 2014
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "Missouri House of Representatives official election results for 2008," accessed July 29, 2010
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Parson's 2008 campaign contributions," accessed July 29, 2010
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Mike Parson's 2020 campaign website, "Meet Mike," accessed September 25, 2020
- ↑ Mike Parson, "Issues," accessed June 3, 2021 (archived)
- ↑ CNN', "Missouri governor and his wife test positive for Covid-19," September 23, 2020
- ↑ The St. Louis Dispatch, "‘I think that thing’s a disaster’: Parson slams recreational weed question on Missouri ballot," August 24, 2022
- ↑ The St. Louis Dispatch, "Voters to decide if Missouri National Guard should be stand-alone agency," August 25, 2022
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Eric Greitens (R) |
Governor of Missouri 2018-2025 |
Succeeded by Mike Kehoe (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Lieutenant Governor of Missouri 2017-2018 |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Missouri State Senate District 28 2011-2017 |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Missouri House of Representatives District 133 2005-2011 |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Polk County Sheriff 1992-2004 |
Succeeded by - |
| |||||||||||||
 |
State of Missouri Jefferson City (capital) |
|---|---|
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