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Missouri Secretary of State election, 2012
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| Missouri Secretary of State |
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August 7, 2012 |
November 6, 2012 |
| State executive official elections in 2012 |
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 not to run for re-election in 2012.[2] The race to replace Carnahan was rated as a toss-up.
In the primary election on August 7, state representative and Afghanistan vet Jason Kander 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]
In the Republican primary, Schoeller won it by 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 had served as an administrative aide to Secretary of State Matt Blunt, experience he argued would have made for a smoother 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. However, the most contentious debates centered around campaign financing. Kander criticized Schoeller for accepting large campaign contributions from financier and political activist Rex Sinquefield, alleging unethical fundraising practices. In response, Schoeller accused Kander of hypocrisy, noting that Democratic incumbent Attorney General Chris Koster had also received donations from Sinquefield. Together, the candidates spent millions on campaign advertising 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]
Two third-party candidates also appeared on the November ballot: Libertarian Cisse Spragins, who had previously run for U.S. Senate in 2010, and Justin Harter, representing the Constitution Party.
Incumbent Robin Carnahan did not endorse a candidate in the race. She advised her then-unknown successor to focus on improving government efficiency and safeguarding voting rights in Missouri. 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 nonpartisan way."[6]
Election Results
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. | ||||
Background
Key Dates
- Administrative deadlines were 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 Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan retiring at the end of her term in 2013, the race to succeed her drew a wide field of candidates. Seven individuals from four political parties filed to run for the office.
Two Democrats filed for the open seat: State Representative and Afghanistan vet Jason Kander and National Chairman of the US National Democratic Party Asian American Caucus MD Rabbi Alam. Kander, who won 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 Representative, Shane Schoeller, ran in the Republican primary. Schoeller was declared the winner on the morning following the August 7 primary election, securing the nomination with a narrow victory over Rupp and Stouffer. Schoeller's campaign focused on reducing business regulations and proposed establishing bipartisan commissions made up of elected officials and citizens to improve clarity in ballot initiative language. He also aimed to use the office to continue efforts started in the House to promote the integrity of the election process.[7]
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.[8]
Stouffer 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.”[9]
Candidates
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 & Debates
Polls
General Election
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Debates
Republican Primary Debate
Republican Debate
Campaign finance
| 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[10] | October 15, 2012 | $956,036.22 | $183,547.11 | $(64,690.36) | $1,074,892.97 | ||||
| Pre-General[11] | 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[12] | October 15, 2012 | $284,749.13 | $159,235.63 | $(64,660.80) | $297,449.31 | ||||
| Pre-General[13] | 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[14]
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/media
Campaign sites
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Jason Kander |
Shane Schoeller |
Third Party Candidates
Ads/Videos
Jason Kander
Shane Schoeller
Former candidates
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Scott Rupp |
Bill Stouffer |
News
- 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
Footnotes
- ↑ 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 (dead link)
- ↑ 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 (dead link)
- ↑ News Press Now, "Secretary of State candidate targets regulations," March 15, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ Rupp for Missouri, "Home," accessed March 27, 2012
- ↑ Politic MO "Incumbent Carnahan and Republican Stouffer to run for secretary of state," February 25, 2011 (dead link)
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Jason Kander Financial Summary," October 15, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Jason Kander Campaign Finance Reports," accessed October 29, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Shane Schoeller Financial Summary," October 15, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Shane Schoeller Campaign Finance Reports," accessed October 29, 2012
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "MD: Statement of Exemption, filed April 4, 2012 (dead link)
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