Missouri secretary of state election, 2012
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The Missouri secretary of state election was held on November 6, 2012, following a primary on August 7, 2012. Election day polling hours were from 6 am until 7 pm.
Jason Kander (D) defeated Shane Schoeller (R) in the general election on November 6, 2012.[1]
Shane Schoeller (R)
Jason Kander (D) 
Cisse Spragins (Libertarian)
Justin Harter (Constitution)
After two terms as Missouri Secretary of State, Democrat Robin Carnahan decided to not run for re-election in 2012.[2] The race to replace Carnahan was rated as a toss-up.
In the primary election on August 7th, state representative and Afghanistan vet Jason Kander handily defeated MD Rabbi Alam for the Democratic nomination. Kander's campaign emphasized his record as a war veteran and in the state house as an advocate for campaign finance and ethics reform. He pledged to simplify the process of starting a small business in Missouri, increase veteran participation in state government, and expand voting rights. He took a firm stance against the voter-ID bill sponsored by fellow state lawmaker and Republican nominee Shane Schoeller, believing it disenfranchised military voters overseas.[3]
Schoeller's road to the GOP nomination was not as smooth, having faced two formidable state senators in the primary. The tight race was among the last to be called after the polls closed, with Schoeller eeking out a victory of less than one percentage point over second place finisher Scott Rupp. His campaign focused on reducing business regulations and a plan to establish bipartisan commissions composed of elected officials and citizens to improve clarity in the language of ballot initiatives. He also wanted to use the office to continue efforts he began in the house of promoting the integrity of the election process..[4] Schoeller was an administrative aide for secretary of state Matt Blunt, experience he said would have eased the transition, had he been elected to the position.[5]
During the campaign, Kander and Schoeller disagreed on most issues, from how to approach voter-ID and ballot language to the role of the business services division, but the contest's most heated moments were about money. Kander, a self-styled champion of campaign finance reform, accused Schoeller of unethical fundraising practices such as accepting sizable campaign contributions from a financier and political activist Rex Sinquefield. Schoeller reacted by calling Kander a hypocrite, pointing out that Democratic incumbent attorney general Chris Koster also took money Sinquefield and that campaign finance policy is not the province of the secretary of state. Together, the candidates spent millions on campaign adversiting in the weeks leading up to the general election. Kander, who had trailed Schoeller in fundraising for most of the race, saved a reported $1 million to spend on last minute television spots, while Schoeller leaned on in-kind contributions from the billboard industry to boost his profile.[5]
There were two third party hopefuls in the race as well. Libertarian candidate Cisse Spragins, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate in 2010, and latecomer Justin Harter, of the Constitution party, appeared on the November ballots alongside Kander and Schoeller.
In preparation for passing the torch to one of these candidates, Carnahan, who refrained from endorsing anyone in the race, instructed her then unknown successor to improve government efficiency and protect Missourians voting rights. She also imparted a message about people's high expectations for government to deliver to both sides of the aisle, saying, "The secretary of state serves everybody and ought to do it in a non-partisan way."[6]
General Election Results
| Missouri Secretary of State General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Jason Kander |
48.9% | 1,298,022 | |
| Republican | Shane Schoeller | 47.4% | 1,258,937 | |
| Libertarian | Cisse Spragins | 2.7% | 70,814 | |
| Constitution | Justin Harter | 1% | 27,710 | |
| Total Votes | 2,655,483 | |||
| Election Results via Missouri Secretary of State. | ||||
Primary Election Results
| Missouri Secretary of State Democratic Primary, 2012 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Jason Kander |
86.9% | 247,630 |
| MD Rabbi Alam | 13.1% | 37,390 |
| Total Votes | 285,020 | |
| Election Results Via: Missouri Secretary of State | ||
| Missouri Secretary of State Republican Primary, 2012 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Shane Schoeller |
35.3% | 193,207 |
| Scott Rupp | 34.5% | 188,701 |
| Bill Stouffer | 30.2% | 165,588 |
| Total Votes | 547,496 | |
| Election Results Via: Missouri Secretary of State | ||
Key Dates
- Administrative deadlines are at close of business (5:00) unless otherwise noted.
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| Feb. 28 - Mar. 27 | Primary election candidate filing period |
| July 11 | Voter registration for primary election |
| Aug. 7 | Primary election |
| July 17 - Aug. 21 | General election candidate filing period |
| Oct. 10 | Voter registration for general election |
| Nov. 6 | General election |
Race background
Primary election
With current Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan retiring from office at the end of her term this year, the race to fill her spot was expected to attract a diverse slew of competitors, and it delivered. A total of seven candidates spanning four parties filed for the job of Missouri's chief elections officer. Five of the candidates filed with the secretary of state on opening day, February 28, and two more sneaked up in March to make the cut.
Two Democrats filed for the open seat: State Representative and Afghanistan vet Jason Kander and National Chairman of US National Democratic Party Asian American Caucus MD Rabbi Alam. Kander, who scored an easy victory in the primary election, pledged to simplify the process of starting a small business in Missouri, enhance veteran participation in state government, and raise ethical standards of campaigns and lobbies. Alam sought the position to increase the rights and opportunities for immigrants.
Two State Senators, Scott Rupp and Bill Stouffer, and one State House Representative, Shane Schoeller ran energetic campaigns for the Republican primary. Schoeller was declared the winner on the morning after the August 7 primary election, having edged out Rupp and Stouffer by a narrow margin.
Rupp said he wanted to use his background as a small business-owner to reach out to Missouri's small business owners, farmers in particular. He also ran on his consistent conservative record as a state senator, having twice helped pass voter-ID legislation to tackle voter-fraud and spearheading a ballot initiative in opposition to Obamacare.[7]
Stouffer, who announced his bid for the office of Missouri's top elections official over before the filing deadline, expressed his determination to use the position to defend elections against fraud. He sponsored the Voter-ID bill in the State Senate saying “Missouri has a rich history of competitive, close elections and the current measures we take to verify the integrity of these elections are unacceptable.”[8]
General Election Candidates
Jason Kander
Shane Schoeller
Cisse Spragins
Justin Harter
Primary Candidates
Democratic primary candidates
Republican primary candidates
Libertarian primary candidates
Constitution primary candidates
Polls
General Election
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Debates
Republican Primary Debate
Republican Debate
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| Contents |
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| 1 Due dates for reports |
| 2 Candidates |
Due dates for reports
The Missouri Ethics Commission administers campaign finance law and maintains all records online.
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For the primary election:
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For the general election:
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Candidates
Jason Kander
| Jason Kander Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Primary-First | April 16, 2012 | $442,091.65 | $265,813.96 | $(79,042.07) | $628,863.54 | ||||
| July Quarterly | July 16, 2012 | $648,567.02 | $229,598.75 | $(80,949.79) | $797,215.98 | ||||
| 8 Day Pre-Primary | July 30, 2012 | $797,215.98 | $100,152.00 | $(37,355.91) | $860,012.07 | ||||
| 30 day Post-Primary | September 7, 2012 | $860,012.07 | $145,667.50 | $(49,643.35) | $956,036.22 | ||||
| General Election First Report[9] | October 15, 2012 | $956,036.22 | $183,547.11 | $(64,690.36) | $1,074,892.97 | ||||
| Pre-General[10] | October 29, 2012 | $1,074,892.97 | $292,929.75 | $(644,932.49) | $722,890.23 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $1,217,709.07 | $(956,613.97) | ||||||||
Shane Schoeller
| Shane Schoeller Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Primary-First | April 16, 2012 | $127,870.68 | $109,348.02 | $(62,257.13) | $174,961.57 | ||||
| July Quarterly | July 16, 2012 | $161,893.78 | $280,496.12 | $(135,441.08) | $301,802.50 | ||||
| 8 Day Pre-Primary | July 30, 2012 | $301,802.50 | $42,297.76 | $(215,386.62) | $103,149.12 (adjusted) | ||||
| 30 day Post-Primary | September 7, 2012 | $103,149.12 | $324,797.12 | $(132,412.54) | $284,749.13 | ||||
| General Election First Report[11] | October 15, 2012 | $284,749.13 | $159,235.63 | $(64,660.80) | $297,449.31 | ||||
| Pre-General[12] | October 29, 2012 | $297,449.31 | $263,356.00 | $(434,706.04) | $126,099.27 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $1,179,530.65 | $(1,044,864.21) | ||||||||
Former candidates
Md Rabbi Alam
MD Rabbi Alam submitted a Statement of Exemption for the first three reporting periods. To qualify for a waiver a candidate must not have:
- Received more than five hundred dollars in total contributions
- Made total expenditures of more than five hundred dollars[13]
Scott Rupp
| Scott Rupp Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Primary-First | April 16, 2012 | $141,448.10 | $13,660.00 | $(91,346.68) | $62,761.42 | ||||
| July Quarterly | July 16, 2012 | $148,375.78 | $88,045.70 | $(60,100.84) | $176,320.64 | ||||
| 8 Day Pre-Primary | July 30, 2012 | $176,320.64 | $43,355.00 | $(51,217.87) | $168,457.77 | ||||
| 30 day Post-Primary | September 7, 2012 | $168,457.77 | $34,015.00 | $(200,119.59) | $1,977.70 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $179,075.7 | $(402,784.98) | ||||||||
Bill Stouffer
| Bill Stouffer Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| Primary-First | April 16, 2012 | $244,983.39 | $38,775.00 | $(76,678.97) | $207,079.42 | ||||
| July Quarterly | July 16, 2012 | $247,157.64 | $76,126.27 | $(48,016.96) | $237,266.95 | ||||
| 8 Day Pre-Primary | July 30, 2012 | $237,266.95 | $23,265.00 | $(73,359.88) | $172,172.07 | ||||
| 30 day Post-Primary | September 7, 2012 | $172,172.07 | $57,701.95 | $(166,050.82) | $40,823.20 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $195,868.22 | $(364,106.63) | ||||||||
Campaign sites
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Jason Kander |
Shane Schoeller |
Third Party Candidates
Ads/Videos
Jason Kander
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Shane Schoeller
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Former candidates
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Scott Rupp
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Bill Stouffer
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- Ballotpedia:Statewide projections for the November 6, 2012 elections Updated October 1
- Election aftermath: Two suspenseful races marked Missouri's state executive primaries August 8
- Election preview: Five state executive seats on tomorrow's primary ballot in Missouri August 6
- Election preview: Strong showing from third party candidates in Missouri's five executive races March 28
See also
- Governor of Missouri
- Lieutenant Governor of Missouri
- Missouri Secretary of State
- Missouri gubernatorial election, 2012
- Missouri lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2012
- Missouri state executive official elections, 2012
- Missouri down ballot state executive elections, 2012
- State executive official elections, 2012
Articles
- Election aftermath: Two suspenseful races marked Missouri's state executive primaries August 8
- Election preview: Five state executive seats on tomorrow's primary ballot in Missouri August 6
- Election preview: Strong showing from third party candidates in Missouri's five executive races March 28
External links
- St. Louis Beacon Overview of Kander and Schoeller, October 17
- Politics1- Missouri guide to elections
- Secretary of State Website- 2012 candidate listings
References
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "November 6, 2012 General Election Results," Accessed November 7, 2012
- ↑ STLToday.com, "Robin Carnahan will not run for a third term as secretary of state," accessed October 1, 2011.
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Shane Schoeller, Missouri Legislator, Says Voter ID Bill Wouldn't Disenfranchise Troops," April 18, 2012
- ↑ News Press Now "Secretary of State candidate targets regulations," March 15, 2012
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 St-Louis Beacon, "In race for secretary of state, Kander and Schoeller emphasize their differences," October 17, 2012
- ↑ Kirksville Daily Express, "Carnahan says no politics for next SOS," April 21, 2012
- ↑ Rupp for Missouri "Home," accessed March 27, 2012
- ↑ Politic MO "Incumbent Carnahan and Republican Stouffer to run for secretary of state," February 25, 2011
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Jason Kander Financial Summary," October 15, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Jason Kander Campaign Finance Reports," October 29, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Shane Schoeller Financial Summary," October 15, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Shane Schoeller Campaign Finance Reports," October 29, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "MD: Statement of Exemption, filed April 4, 2012
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