Andrew Bailey Wins Missouri Republican AG Primary

Bailey beat Will Scharf in an expensive and bruising contest likely to presage the general election victor in heavily Republican Missouri.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey testifies before the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the Manhattan District Attorney's Office on Capitol Hill in Washington, on June 13, 2024. Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.—Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey survived an expensive primary challenge and will seek a full term in his office this November.

On Aug. 6, Missouri Republican Party primary voters voted to keep Bailey according to unofficial results published by the Missouri Secretary of State’s office. With 658 out of 3,566 precincts reporting, the incumbent attorney general had 64.8 percent to 35.2 for Will Scharf.

“Tonight we came up short,” Scharf wrote in a concession post on X posted soon after 8:30 p.m. local time. He endorsed Bailey in the same post.

In an X post on Aug. 6, Bailey said his win sent a powerful message to the nation that “Missouri is not for sale.”

“This victory is for the hardworking Missourians who have fought tirelessly alongside me over the past 18 months. Your dedication and passion have been the driving force behind this incredible triumph,” Bailey said. “Together, we WILL keep Missouri strong, safe, and free.”

Bailey was appointed as Missouri’s top law enforcement official in November 2022 after Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) won election to Congress the same month. This November, Bailey will run for a full term against Elad Gross.

Gross ran unopposed for the Democratic Party’s nomination for Missouri attorney general. He was an Assistant Attorney General under former AG Chris Koster.

With the primary behind him, Bailey will head into November with a big advantage over the Democratic candidate. No Democrat has won a statewide election in Missouri since former State Auditor Nicole Galloway in 2018. The GOP currently controls the state’s executive branch and both houses of its legislature.

Tuesday night’s result ended a bruising, personal campaign that was flooded with attack ads against Bailey and his opponent, Will Scharf, financed by outside organizations allied with either campaign.

Scharf, an attorney working with the James Otis Law Group LLC, challenged Bailey for the state executive branch office with the support of national conservative power players. Scharf was endorsed by the influential Club for Growth, and his allied PAC Defend Missouri was financially supported by conservative activist Leonard Leo and Republican megadonor Paul Singer.

“This race was about taking on a political establishment in this state that I continue to believe is badly broken. I believe that Missourians deserve better government than they have been getting, and everything we have heard in our travels around the state confirms that belief. I am hopeful that our Republican slate of candidates delivers for Missouri conservatives in the years ahead,” Scharf wrote in his concession post on X.

The down-ballot race was an exceptionally expensive contest. In a July 22 email to The Epoch Times, political spending analysis firm AdImpact said more than $14 million had been spent on the race. That amount made it the most expensive down-ballot race in the country.

Bailey, who won the endorsement of leading Missouri Republicans including Gov. Mike Parson, Schmitt, and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), campaigned on a socially conservative platform highlighting his achievements and legal actions in office.

Scharf, who has worked on former President Donald Trump’s legal team, ran as “Trump’s attorney” and criticized Bailey for what he said were mismanaged cases and poor leadership in the office.