Blunt shocker spurs scramble among Missouri GOP hopefuls eyeing Senate bids

(The Center Square) – Missouri senior Sen. Roy Blunt’s unexpected announcement Monday that he won’t seek a fourth six-year term in 2022 has sparked a scramble among Republican hopefuls seeking his seat.

U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Ballwin, U.S. Rep. Jason Smith, R-Salem, and Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, followed Blunt’s announcement with statements that they will be “in the mix” for the GOP nomination in a crowded field of candidates.

“Missourians will have an important decision to make about who is best to fill this vital Senate seat in 2022,” Kehoe said. “Claudia (his wife) and I intend to spend time talking with family, friends and supporters about how I can best contribute to the future of our great state.”

Blunt, 71, entered politics in 1973, when he was appointed Greene County county clerk, a position he would be re-elected to three times over a 12-year span.

Twice elected Missouri Secretary of State from 1985-93, Blunt was president of Southwest Baptist University from 1993-96, before election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996. He served 14 years in the House, winning seven races.

Blunt was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010 after former two-time Missouri governor and six-term U.S. Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond unexpectedly announced his retirement — a shocker similar to Blunt’s announcement Monday.

“After 14 general election victories – three to county office, seven to the United States House of Representatives and four statewide elections – I won’t be a candidate for reelection to the United States Senate next year,” Blunt said in a video posted to Twitter.

Blunt was Missouri’s senior U.S. senator after Democrat Claire McCaskill was defeated in 2018 by then-Attorney General Josh Hawley.

“Roy Blunt has been a Missouri institution,” Hawley said in a statement. “A consummate legislator, Roy has worked tirelessly for the state he loves and has served Missourians with distinction.”

While his voting record was solid red and reflected former President Donald Trump’s agenda the last four chaotic years, “old school” Blunt was never a Trump adherent and to many observers, appeared uncomfortable with the firebrand partisanship of fellow Republicans, most notably Hawley.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Blunt “has one of the Senate’s most conservative voting records, yet he generally avoids the confrontational, firebrand style.”

The Lugar Center and Georgetown’s McCourt School of Public Policy’s Bipartisan Index ranked Blunt the 11th most bipartisan senator in 2018.

“From a high school history teacher to Missouri’s senior senator, Roy has always put his love of this state above everything else,” Gov. Mike Parson tweeted Monday. “Roy has worked hard to ensure Missouri is not forgotten by D.C. and we are better for it.”

In addition to Wagner, Smith, and Kehoe, others weighing runs for the GOP nomination in 2022 include Attorney General Eric Schmitt and former Gov. Eric Greitens, who resigned amid scandal in 2018.

After reiterating Blunt’s accomplishments in a statement, Ashford said, “It is imperative that Republicans take back the Senate in 2022. Katie (his wife) and I will be praying and talking to friends and family about how I can best serve the state of Missouri.”

Greitens last week said he was “evaluating” running against Blunt, who he maintains did not adequately back Trump.

Right-wing commentator John Cardillo, a former New York City police officer and Newsmax TV host, Monday encouraged Greitens to run.

“Trump needs to endorse Eric before Mitt Romney backed RINOs flood the field,” Cardillo tweeted. “He’s a real America First warrior who will continue Trump’s agenda and be an ally in the Senate.”

“Appreciate your support, brother,” Greitens replied.

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