JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Republican National Committee has received special permission from the Missouri GOP to spend money on behalf of U.S. Senate candidate Josh Hawley prior to the August primary.
The move, which the party has only done twice since 2006, was done as 10 other Republicans are vying for the parties nomination on August 7, 2018.
“President Trump has endorsed Josh Hawley, and as was the case in 2006 and 2010, the MOGOP Executive Committee voted overwhelmingly in favor of our leadership signing a letter authorizing the RNC to spend on Hawley’s behalf before the primary,” said Chris Nuelle, a spokesperson with the Missouri GOP, in a statement.
Rule 11 of the RNC bylaws prohibits the national party from spending on behalf of a candidate before a primary, unless given a waiver by that candidate’s state party. The Missouri GOP Executive Committee approved the waiver on Monday in a 12-1 vote.
This means that the RNC is now authorized to spend money directly on behalf of Hawley, before the voters have chosen him as the Republican candidate to challenge for Missouri’s Senate seat in the November election.
Hawley will be facing Austin Peterson, Tony Monetti, Fred Ryman, Christina Smith, Kristi Nichols, Bradley Krembs, Ken Patterson, Brian G. Hagg, Courtland Sykes and Peter Pfeifer for the Republican nomination. They are all aiming to unseat incumbent U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill — the Democrat who currently holds the seat.
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.
