Craig O’Dear files 22,000 signatures to get on Senate ballot as independent

Independent Senate candidate Craig O’Dear’s campaign says it has submitted more than 22,000 signatures to the Missouri secretary of state’s office to get him on the November ballot.

The requirement is 10,000 signatures of Missouri registered voters. The secretary of state’s office will review the signatures and make sure the bar is met.

O’Dear’s campaign set a goal of 20,000 to ensure they’d reach that number, so at 22,000, they are confident they’ll be on the ballot.

“I am proud of what we have accomplished in this campaign,” O’Dear said in a statement released by his campaign. “Missouri voters will have the choice to pick a candidate committed to leading away from hyper-partisan warfare and gridlock and toward unity and common sense problem solving.”

If his campaign can snag 35 percent of the vote, they’ll likely win, O’Dear said.

“There is no more certain way to waste your vote in this election than voting for one more party-line Republican or one more party-line Democrat. It’s not working for anyone except the career politicians,” he said.

Missouri has never sent an independent to the Senate.

The election has since last year been considered a two-person race between Sen. Claire McCaskill and Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, and the most recent polls show that it’s neck and neck. In such a close race, if voters from one party split for the independent at a higher rate than voters from the other party, O’Dear’s entrance could be decisive.

McCaskill has attracted the most donations, with nearly $21 million raised since the start of last year, according to Federal Election Commission data. Hawley comes in second with $5.3 million. O’Dear has raised about $454,000.

O’Dear’s six largest donations all came from the same source: himself.

This story was originally published July 31, 2018 at 4:38 PM.