MOScout Daily Update: Hemphill Hires Henderson - October Quarters - Parson Vaping Plan - Blues Visit WH and more...

Henderson to Hemphill

Liz Henderson, former staffer to Sens. Jake Hummel and Lauren Arthur, has joined Hemphill and Associates.  It’s a strong hire for Hemphill which represents the gaming establishments (Argosy Casino, Hollywood Casino, Penn National Gaming) as well as other interests like Missouri Pork Association, Port KC, and healthcare groups.

The Big Picture

Henderson is one of the first staffers to take a job at a lobbying firm since the passage of CLEAN Missouri.  She’s under a two year “freeze” before she can lobby.  That means she’ll be doing a variety of other tasks - monitoring legislation, working client services etc – with no lobbying in her portfolio.

Dems Ding Parson’s Vaping Announcement

Governor Mike Parson announced an executive order yesterday aimed at curbing youth vaping.  See it here.  It ordered the Department of Health and Senior Services, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the Department of Public Safety to development a statewide education campaign to deter youth vaping.  It allocated no additional resources.

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade pointed the finger back at the governor.  “As a state senator five years ago, Mike Parson voted to override a gubernatorial veto to prohibit vaping products from being taxed or regulated as tobacco products under Missouri law. That vote to protect vaping industry profits has not aged well… A good place to begin in addressing this crisis would be for the governor to support repealing the shortsighted, pro-industry legal protections that have helped addict another generation of young Missourians to nicotine and in some cases cost them their lives.”

Driving the Day

Press release: Governor Mike Parson will be joined by the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry for a special campaign announcement on Wednesday, October 16, 2019 at 3:30 pm.

What It Means

Looks like MOChamber is unveiling its endorsement of Parson tomorrow.  His agenda of workforce development and infrastructure investment fits with their agenda. 
And

Up near the top of the Chamber’s agenda for the upcoming year is more tort reform…

October Quarters in Senate Races

Senate 1 (Sifton termed) – Democratic Rep. Doug Beck raised $58,552, and has $157,447 on-hand.  That’s a real solid quarter.  

·         Republicans are said to be recruiting a self-funder to take on Beck. 

Senate 3 (Romine termed– Republican Kent Scism raised $20,750, and has $20,730 on-hand.

·         His primary opponents have scattered and it looks like he may get a pass from both Republicans – and Democrats.

Senate 5 (Nasheed termed) – Rep. Steve Roberts raised $18,715, and has $91,654 on-hand. Michelle Sherod raised $55,215 (which included a $10K loan to herself), and has $53,326 on-hand.  And Alderwoman Megan Green raised $18,567 (in about two weeks) and has $18,096 on hand. 

·         Interesting to note that Green’s committee was formed September 17, and quarter ended on the 30th.  That means she raised that in about two weeks. 

Senate 13 (Walsh termed) – Rep. Tommie Pierson Jr. raised $24,460, and has $41,706 on-hand.  Rep. Alan Green raised $3,875 and has $11,818 on-hand.  Angela Mosley raised $410 and has $387 on-hand. 

·         Lobbying corps feels that Pierson is that favorite in the race.

Senate 15 – Democratic Rep. Deb Lavender outraised incumbent Republican Sen. Andrew Koenig again.  She recorded a very strong quarter.  She raised $111,460, bringing her campaign bank account to $208,026.

·         Lavender raised three times more than the incumbent did this quarter.  But as I noted yesterday, Republicans will throw everything they have to protect their last incumbent senator in St. Louis County.

Senate 17 – As I wrote yesterday Sen.  Lauren Arthur had a very strong quarter ($100K+) with no declared Republican candidate.

Senate 19 – Sen. Caleb Rowden raised $40,370 and has $161,563 on-hand. 

·         This is an expensive district, so look for Rowden to rev up the fundraising machine.  But with Dems in a primary, he likely face an opponent with a depleted bank account next summer.

Senate 25 (Libla termed) – Eddy Justice raised $7,251 and has $114,702 on-hand while his main opponent Jeff Shawan raised $65,910 (which included a $50K loan to himself) and has $203,672 on-hand.  And Steve Cookson raised $10,010, and has $8,196 on-hand.

·         You take out Shawan’s loan to himself and the three candidates raised $15K, $10K, and $7K this quarter.  Those are some of the lowest totals in competitive races across the state.  In that environment third-party PACs could have a big influence.

Senate 27 (Wallingford termed) – Rep. Kathy Swan raised $42,242, just a bit less than her rival Rep. Holly Rehder.  Swan now has $146,628 on-hand, again trailing Rehder’s $210K total.

·         Rehder is slowly pulling away in the money race.

Senate 29 (Sater termed) – David Cole raised $40,050 and has $77,702 on-hand.  Rep. Mike Moon raised $20,955 (including a $7,600 loan to himself) and has $37,101 on-hand.

·         Moon was helped this quarter by $7,500 from Conservative Caucus PACs.

Senate 31 (Emery termed) – Rep. Jack Bondon raised $53,720, and has $166,568.  Former Rep. Rick Brattin raised $16,624, and has $16,575 on-hand.

·         Bondon clearly is winning the money race here.  But don’t forget Brattin Brigade PAC is sitting on $100K from David Steward’s CL PAC.

Senate 33 – Rep. Robert Ross raised $59,367, and has $126,906 on-hand.  While Van Kelly raised $100,000 (entirely from a self-funded loan) and has $86,826 on-hand.  And Rep. Karla Eslinger raised $410. 

·         Kelly is going to have to keep loaning himself money, or start fundraising.

eMailbag on Fundraising Numbers

$50K fundraising quarter in a competitive primary is equivalent to $100K quarter in a no-primary, competitive general election race. Both are very big hauls.  But a primary freezes a lot of donors out.  You would just be shocked by how many people tell these candidates they're sitting the primary out.  $50k is the new $100K for those races.

Top 25 COH

Here are the top 25 committees, ranked by cash on-hand.

Uniting Missouri PAC - $4.3 million.

Missourians for Healthcare - $1.7 million.

Carpenters Help in the Political Process (CHIPP) - $1.5 million.

Parson for Missouri - $1.25 million.

MO Opportunity PAC - $1.1 million (doesn’t include another $730K held in short-term investments).

Eastern Missouri Laborers Educational & Benevolent Fund - $1.1 million.

Enterprise Holdings, Inc. PAC - $858,464.

Leadership for America - $720,252.

Greitens for Missouri  - $669,002.

Lyda Krewson for Mayor - $623,265.

Friends of Gregory FX Daly - $588,370.

MO National Education Assoc-PAC  - $561,766.

Schmitt For Missouri - $559,958.

American Property Casualty Insurance Association Political Account - $556,053.

Nicole Galloway for Missouri - $540,315.

BUILD St. Louis PAC, Inc. - $537,459.

Keep Government Accountable - $532,453.

Citizens for Jake Zimmerman - $503,265.

Callahan for Missouri - $487,710.

House Republican Campaign Committee, Inc - $449,623.

CL PAC - $438,369.

Friends of Eric Burlison - $408,544.

Sanders for Jackson County - $404,122.

We Are Missouri - $395,711.

Missouri Realtors PAC Inc - $364,915.

Other Notes on Reports

·         Former Governor Eric Greitens’ committee continues to pay out money to lawyers, and is still sitting on about $670K.

·         Missourians for Healthcare, the campaign for expanding Medicaid, is pushing ahead.  They paid $700,000 to Fieldworks LLC to collect signatures for the initiative petition.

·         Elad Gross, the Democratic candidate for attorney general, had a fearsomely long report: 102 pages.  It documents a deluge of small donations $5, and $10.  Gross is working the grassroots angle, and working it hard.  It’s much more impressive than the topline numbers: $27,655 raised; $22,925 spent; and $26,172 on-hand.  AG Eric Schmitt, meanwhile, has about $2.3 million on-hand between his candidate committee and PAC.

Blues Visit White House

Stanley Cup Champion St. Louis Blues visited the White House yesterday.  Politicos in attendance… Governor Mike Parson; US Senators Roy Blunt, and Josh Hawley; Congressmen Ann Wagner, Blaine Luetkemeyer, Billy Long, Jason Smith; State Senators Dave Schatz and Tony Luetkemeyer; State Representatives Mary Elizabeth Coleman and Holly Rehder; MO GOP Party Chair Jean Evans, former gubernatorial candidate  Dave Spence, and political consultants Dave Hageman and James Harris.

New Committees

Missouri State Assessors Association PAC was formed.  Its treasurer is Daniel W Whittle.         

Capaha PAC was formed.  Its treasurer is Kimberly M Chronister.          

Lobbyist Registrations

Elizabeth Lauber added Eric Kirberg, Kirberg Company.

Rodney Gray, Tami Holliday, and Susan Henderson Moore added Maritz Family Development III LLC.

David Pearce added University of Central Missouri.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to Rita Heard Days and Antonio French.