Missouri Republican Kurt Schaefer gets another $1.4 million from mega donor Rex Sinquefield

Three political action committees funded by retired St. Louis investor Rex Sinquefield cut checks to a Republican candidate for attorney general on Friday that totaled more than $900,000.

A week earlier that candidate — Republican state Sen. Kurt Schaefer of Columbia — got more than $500,000 from those groups.

That $1.4 million infusion of cash puts the total Sinquefield has invested in Schaefer’s attorney general campaign at more than $2 million.

Schaefer is running against Josh Hawley, a University of Missouri-Columbia law professor. The race has grown increasingly ugly in recent weeks, with both campaigns running negative attack ads. That follows months of allegation of corruption and unethical behavior that has resulted in complaints to the Missouri Ethics Commission and the U.S. attorneys office, as well as a lawsuit.

The infusion of cash will no doubt escalate the campaign attacks in the final weeks before the Aug. 2 primary.

Schaefer originally took $750,000 directly from Sinquefield. The latest donations, however, have been funneled through a trio of PACs fully funded by Sinquefield.

On Friday, he got $404,000 from a group called Great St. Louis; $253,000 from Missourians for Excellence in Government; and $248,000 from Grow Missouri.

For his part, Hawley has a Missouri benefactor of his own. Joplin businessman David Humphreys donated $500,000 to Hawley’s campaign in May. Humphreys sister cut a $250,000 check as well.