After Republican outcry and the filing of a lawsuit, Scot Van Meter has officially withdrawn as a candidate for the Missouri Senate.
Van Meter is currently serving as the Democrat-elected Buchanan County Assessor, a post he has held since 2001. He entered the race to replace term-limited Sen. Rob Schaaf as a Republican, a move that led many to cry foul.
“Running a democrat from Buchanan as a republican for my seat in order to split the vote and advantage the machine’s candidate Leutkemeyer shows their desperation and total lack of honor,” Schaaf said on Twitter in March.
Tony Luetkemeyer and Harry Roberts are Republicans running for the seat.
GOP cries foul over Democrat filing as a Republican for state Senate
The 34th Republican Senatorial District Committee filed a lawsuit on April 30 for a preliminary and permanent injunction against the Secretary of State, Jay Ashcroft, and Van Meter. They cited an April filing with the Missouri Ethics Commission where Van Meter is listed as a Democrat — after having filed to run as a Republican.
SD 34 Republicans appeal to court to remove Van Meter from ballot
On May 4, just days after the lawsuit was filed, Van Meter withdrew his candidacy according to the Secretary of State’s website.
Alisha Shurr was a reporter for The Missouri Times and The Missouri Times Magazine. She joined The Missouri Times in January 2018 after working as a copy editor for her hometown newspaper in Southern Oregon. Alisha is a graduate of Kansas State University.
