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Greitens refills war chest after contentious primary

ST. LOUIS – After a four-way primary fight, Eric Greitens stood above his opponents victorious, but his win came at a price.

Although he has raised a whopping total of $13.4 million, Greitens’ coffers got as low as $628,238 after the election, according to the cash on hand he reported in his “30-Day After Primary Election” campaign report. Compared to Democratic nominee Chris Koster’s nearly untouched $10.8 million, Greitens had significant ground to make up.

But Greitens has shown a penchant for fundraising, often doing so outside the state to collect checks from venture capitalists that he met and encountered while establishing his nonprofit The Mission Continues. He refilled his war chest to $3.4 million by the filing of that 30-Day After Report, and the last week has seen big names with deep pockets step forward to support Greitens.

Eric Greitens gives his victory speech after winning the Republican nomination for governor Aug. 2, 2016
Eric Greitens gives his victory speech after winning the Republican nomination for governor Aug. 2, 2016. (Travis Zimpfer/THE MISSOURI TIMES)

While the mysterious SEALs for Truth PAC has yet to drop another seven-figure donation, other major donors from Missouri and abroad have stepped in to help the governor.

A $500,000 donation from David Humphreys Wednesday morning shows Humphreys perhaps playing his biggest card yet in his fight for Right-to-Work and other pieces of union-opposed legislation. This gift marks the first time Greitens has received money from one of Missouri’s two prominent Republican donors. Humphreys donated $250,000 to Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder during the primary, and Rex Sinquefield, the state’s other prominent mega-donor, helped fund former Speaker Catherine Hanaway’s bid for the governor’s mansion.

Greitens has also continued his ability to raise funds from outside the state, though much of the money coming to him is from the national Republican leadership. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner wrote Greitens a check for $100,000 dated Sept. 15, and the Republican Governor’s Association gave the former Navy SEAL an additional $750,000 Monday after already giving him his largest donation yet: $2.5 million in late August.

That $2.5 million donation accounted for almost 55 percent of all the money Greitens raised between the end of the primary and the filing of his 30-Day After report.

Greitens also received a $250,000 donation from Colorado and Wisconsin-based venture capitalist Michael Shannon, a frequent donor to Republican candidates and causes.

In total, Greitens has received over $1.7 million in the last week, and just over $2 million in September.