Gov. Parson already cast his ballot in Senate primary, but refuses to say who has his vote
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Thursday said he’s already cast his ballot for the upcoming Republican primary for U.S. Senate, but he refused to say which candidate he voted for in the crowded field.
“I’ve already made that vote,” Parson told reporters when asked who he planned to vote for in the Senate primary on Aug. 2.
Kelli Jones, Parson’s spokesperson, later told The Star that the governor cast an absentee ballot because he plans to attend several speaking arrangements throughout the state on the day of the primary. She said he would not be announcing who he voted for.
Parson’s response signals that he will sidestep a public endorsement of any Republican U.S. Senate candidate with less than two weeks before the primary.
The contentious primary race pits former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, who Parson replaced as governor upon Greitens’ resignation in 2018, and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, who Parson picked to serve as attorney general later that same year. Other contenders include U.S. Reps. Vicky Hartzler and Billy Long.
Greitens is viewed by many political observers as the front-runner in the race, but he faces allegations of child abuse from his ex-wife that threaten to cost Republicans a safe Senate seat if he wins the nomination. The former governor spent seven hours testifying on the allegations behind closed doors in Columbia Wednesday as part of his ongoing child custody dispute with his ex-wife Sheena Greitens.
The abuse allegations follow Greitens’ other public scandals. Parson’s predecessor stepped down as governor in 2018 following claims that he blackmailed a woman to keep her quiet about an extramarital affair.
Asked Thursday what a Greitens nomination would mean for Republicans in November, Parson punted on the question.
“I’m not gonna talk about scenarios,” he said. “We’ll talk about that when the day comes, but, right now, that’s a personal matter between him and his wife.”
Parson added that “the courts are trying to figure that out, so I don’t want to comment too much on a court action that’s going on, but that will all come out to light someday. We’ll figure out what’s right, what’s wrong on that and we’ll see how it affects the election.”
Parson told reporters in March that he believed the allegations leveled at Greitens, which include abuse against his ex-wife Sheena Greitens and their two young children, but he stopped short of calling on the former governor to drop out of the race.
“I have no reason to doubt Sheena Greitens on what she said,” Parson said in March. “If she filled that out and she signed it, to an official affidavit, until it’s proven different, I think that’s her affidavit.”
In an affidavit filed in March, Sheena Greitens referenced several times where her ex-husband was physically and emotionally abusive to her and their children. They include a time where the former governor allegedly hit one of his sons in the face while he was sitting in his booster seat. In another incident, Sheena Greitens said her son told her that the former governor grabbed him by the hair. She also wrote that her ex-husband pushed and knocked her over and took away her phone.
