ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Over 200 people voted in the straw poll at last night’s In Defense of Liberty Dinner hosted by Rep. Paul Curtman at the Stegton Regency Banquet and Conference Center in St. Charles.
The dinner was rife with Republican candidates and libertarian leaning conservatives who are likely Republican primary voters.
Gubernatorial candidates John Brunner, Senator Bob Dixon, Eric Greitens and Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, as well as lt. governor candidate Bev Randles and Secretary of State candidate Jay Ashcroft were in attendance.
The straw poll was officially held for the offices of president, governor, and lt. governor, and the poll winners included:
- PRESIDENT: Sen. Ted Cruz and Sen. Rand Paul
- GOVERNOR: John Brunner
- LT. GOVERNOR: Bev Randles
While not officially part of the straw poll and not included to speak at the event, state Sen. Kurt Schaefer was the choice for attorney general over college professor Josh Hawley by a nearly 2 to 1 margin, and Jay Ashcroft was attendees choice for secretary of state by a similar margin.
Curtman, who is a rising star in the House Republican caucus, is seen by many as a future congressional candidate and has held the event for four years. He hasn’t formally endorsed anyone for governor in 2016, while he is the chairman of Bev Randles bid for lt. governor this cycle, and has endorsed State Senator Eric Schmitt for State Treasurer. Schmitt is unopposed in the primary.
TOTAL PERCENTAGES
PRESIDENT
Cruz 27%
Paul 27%
Carson 14%
Rubio 9%
Trump 8%
Florina 3%
Santorum 3%
Bush 3%
Christie 2%
Huckabee 2%
Jindal 1%
Kasich 1%
GOVERNOR
Brunner 52%
Kinder 21%
Greitens 18%
Hanaway 7%
Dixon 2%
Lt. Governor
Randles 78%
Parson 22%
Rachael Herndon was the editor at The Missouri Times and also produced This Week in Missouri Politics, published Missouri Times Magazine, and co-hosted the #MoLeg podcast. She joined The Missouri Times in 2014, returning to political reporting after working as a campaign and legislative staffer.
Rachael studied at the University of Missouri – Columbia. She lives in Jefferson City with her husband, Brandon, and their two children.