Today is the Missouri Senate primary to replace outgoing Senator Roy Blunt who is not seeking reelection.
As reported by Ballotpedia, there are 21 candidates running in the Republican primary in the race.
Former Governor Eric Greitens and Attorney General Eric Schmitt as well as Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler, have led in the race thus far.
“The Missouri Independent’s Jason Hancock said, “Polls throughout the campaign have shown Greitens, Hartzler and Attorney General Eric Schmitt tightly grouped at the top of the crowded Republican field,” but that an endorsement from former President Donald Trump (R) “is widely considered a potential silver bullet in the race that would automatically launch whoever received it to frontrunner status.”[5] As of August 1, Trump had not endorsed a candidate in the race. “
Former President Donald Trump weighed in on the race last night, and chaos ensued in the Twitterverse.
After the vague endorsement from the former president, both candidates named “Eric” claimed to have Trump’s support.
Congressman Billy Long — another candidate in the race – also took Trump’s statement to mean that he was the one who got the endorsement.
Republicans are favored to hold the seat in November, but Missouri was represented by a Democrat in the seat as recently as 2018 when “Air Claire” Claire McCaskill was ousted by Josh Hawley who has become a firebrand in the Senate during the first few years of his term.
The Senate is currently 50-50, so Republicans must nominate a strong candidate who can cement the GOP hold on the state in November and make sure that this is a race Republicans don’t have to worry about.
The Cook Political Report rates the seat as “Solid Republican.”
This story is developing. Stay with American Liberty News for the latest updates.
Both Eric’s sound like good candidates.