United States presidential election in Missouri, 2012

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Main article: United States presidential election, 2012
United States presidential election in Missouri, 2012
Missouri
2008 ←
 November 6, 2012
 → 2016
  Mitt Romney by Gage Skidmore 6 cropped.jpg Obama portrait crop.jpg
Nominee Mitt Romney Barack Obama
Party Republican Democratic
Home state Massachusetts Illinois
Running mate Paul Ryan Joe Biden
Electoral vote 10 0
Popular vote 1,482,440 1,223,796
Percentage 53.76% 44.38%

Missouri presidential election results 2012.svg
County Results
  Obama—80-90%
  Obama—50-60%
  Romney—50-60%
  Romney—60-70%
  Romney—70-80%
President before election

Barack Obama
Democratic

 Elected President

Barack Obama
Democratic
Elections in Missouri
Seal of Missouri.svg
Seal Of The President Of The United States Of America.svg 2012 U.S. presidential election
Democratic Party
Republican Party
Minor parties
Other races
House
Senate
Gubernatorial
Vice-Presidential (Dem.
Rep.)

The 2012 United States presidential election in Missouri took place on November 6, 2012 as part of the 2012 General Election in which all 50 states plus The District of Columbia participated. Missouri voters chose 10 electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, against Republican challenger and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan.

On election day, Missouri was won by Mitt Romney, who took 53.76% of the vote to Barack Obama's 44.38%, a margin of 9.38%. Although a battleground in past elections, Missouri is considered to be trending toward the Republicans, having been the only swing state to be won (albeit narrowly) by Republican John McCain in the 2008 election. Consequently the state was not heavily contested by either side in 2012, and the Republicans ultimately carried Missouri by the largest margin since 1984.

Obama carried only three counties and the City of St. Louis. He carried Boone County, home to Columbia and the University of Missouri; Jackson County, where most of Kansas City is located; and St. Louis County.

Contents

General Election [edit]

Results [edit]

United States presidential election in Missouri, 2012[1]
Party Candidate Running mate Votes Percentage Electoral votes
Republican Mitt Romney Paul Ryan 1,482,440 53.76% 10
Democratic Barack Obama Joe Biden 1,223,796 44.38% 0
Libertarian Gary Johnson Jim Gray 43,151 1.57% 0
Constitution Virgil Goode Jim Clymer 7,936 0.29% 0
Totals 2,757,323 100.00% 10

By county [edit]

County Romney Votes Obama Votes Others Votes Total
Adair 55.80% 5,648 41.68% 4,218 2.52% 255 10,121
Andrew 65.70% 5,457 31.89% 2,649 2.41% 200 8,306
Atchison 70.21% 1,902 27.91% 756 1.88% 51 2,709
Audrain 62.16% 6,186 35.55% 3,538 2.28% 227 9,951
Barry 71.22% 9,832 26.56% 3,667 2.22% 307 13,806
Barton 76.85% 4,416 21.44% 1,232 1.71% 98 5,746
Bates 64.60% 5,020 32.90% 2,557 2.50% 194 7,771
Benton 66.28% 6,069 31.94% 2,925 1.78% 163 9,157
Bollinger 75.05% 4,094 22.24% 1,213 2.71% 148 5,455
Boone 47.09% 37,343 50.17% 39,782 2.74% 2,171 79,296
Buchanan 53.15% 18,660 44.42% 15,594 2.43% 852 35,106
Butler 72.52% 12,248 25.83% 4,363 1.65% 278 16,889
Caldwell 65.31% 2,724 31.48% 1,313 3.21% 134 4,171
Callaway 64.42% 11,742 33.30% 6,070 2.28% 416 18,228
Camden 68.77% 15,089 29.43% 6,458 1.80% 395 21,942
Cape Girardeau 71.04% 25,343 27.23% 9,713 1.73% 616 35,672
Carroll 71.38% 3,072 26.81% 1,154 1.81% 78 4,304
Carter 70.67% 1,978 26.94% 754 2.39% 67 2,799
Cass 63.20% 30,912 34.85% 17,044 1.96% 957 48,913
Cedar 72.40% 4,375 25.42% 1,536 2.18% 132 6,043
Chariton 62.86% 2,402 35.04% 1,339 2.09% 80 3,821
Christian 72.37% 27,465 25.85% 9,809 1.79% 678 37,952
Clark 53.64% 1,730 43.35% 1,398 3.01% 97 3,225
Clay 53.22% 56,131 44.80% 47,250 1.98% 2,084 105,465
Clinton 60.06% 5,904 37.49% 3,685 2.45% 241 9,830
Cole 66.08% 24,488 32.39% 12,003 1.53% 567 37,058
Cooper 65.06% 4,887 32.94% 2,474 2.00% 150 7,511
Crawford 67.17% 6,434 30.81% 2,951 2.03% 194 9,579
Dade 74.31% 2,895 24.10% 939 1.59% 62 3,896
Dallas 68.58% 4,992 29.15% 2,122 2.27% 165 7,279
Daviess 64.98% 2,282 32.00% 1,124 3.02% 106 3,512
DeKalb 70.25% 3,056 27.45% 1,194 2.30% 100 4,350
Dent 73.51% 4,883 23.86% 1,585 2.63% 175 6,643
Douglas 70.91% 4,649 26.07% 1,709 3.02% 198 6,556
Dunklin 64.32% 6,849 34.13% 3,635 1.55% 165 10,649
Franklin 62.85% 29,271 34.99% 16,294 2.16% 1,008 46,573
Gasconade 68.62% 4,895 29.42% 2,099 1.96% 140 7,134
Gentry 66.27% 1,986 31.26% 937 2.47% 74 2,997
Greene 61.12% 76,786 36.72% 46,130 2.17% 2,723 125,639
Grundy 69.27% 3,030 27.71% 1,212 3.02% 132 4,374
Harrison 71.01% 2,624 26.63% 984 2.35% 87 3,695
Henry 61.55% 6,229 35.61% 3,604 2.85% 288 10,121
Hickory 60.58% 2,835 37.03% 1,733 2.39% 112 4,680
Holt 74.68% 1,725 23.85% 551 1.47% 34 2,310
Howard 61.96% 3,012 35.42% 1,722 2.61% 127 4,861
Howell 70.63% 11,541 26.88% 4,393 2.49% 407 16,341
Iron 55.87% 2,252 41.40% 1,669 2.73% 110 4,031
Jackson 53.32% 92,801 44.80% 77,965 1.88% 3,270 174,036
Jasper 69.33% 31,345 28.33% 12,808 2.34% 1,060 45,213
Jefferson 55.29% 53,973 42.59% 41,570 2.12% 2,070 97,613
Johnson 60.71% 12,750 36.48% 7,661 2.81% 590 21,001
Kansas City 21.90% 29,090 76.90% 102,135 1.20% 1,593 132,818
Knox 61.57% 1,205 35.67% 698 2.76% 54 1,957
Laclede 71.18% 10,934 26.65% 4,093 2.17% 334 15,361
Lafayette 62.08% 9,800 35.79% 5,650 2.13% 336 15,786
Lawrence 72.50% 11,417 25.49% 4,014 2.01% 317 15,748
Lewis 62.56% 2,677 35.24% 1,508 2.20% 94 4,279
Lincoln 63.27% 14,330 34.14% 7,733 2.59% 586 22,649
Linn 60.27% 3,331 36.75% 2,031 2.99% 165 5,527
Livingston 66.17% 4,006 31.48% 1,906 2.35% 142 6,054
Macon 65.65% 4,700 32.25% 2,309 2.10% 150 7,159
Madison 65.46% 3,227 32.21% 1,588 2.33% 115 4,930
Maries 69.74% 3,165 28.62% 1,299 1.63% 74 4,538
Marion 65.17% 7,923 33.16% 4,031 1.68% 204 12,158
McDonald 72.84% 5,694 24.56% 1,920 2.60% 203 7,817
Mercer 75.83% 1,255 21.33% 353 2.84% 47 1,655
Miller 73.50% 8,099 24.06% 2,651 2.44% 269 11,019
Mississippi 60.91% 2,997 37.76% 1,858 1.32% 65 4,920
Moniteau 73.01% 4,703 24.96% 1,608 2.03% 131 6,442
Monroe 63.20% 2,564 34.46% 1,398 2.34% 95 4,057
Montgomery 65.56% 3,486 32.61% 1,734 1.82% 97 5,317
Morgan 65.99% 5,733 31.92% 2,773 2.09% 182 8,688
New Madrid 59.09% 4,284 38.81% 2,814 2.10% 152 7,250
Newton 72.48% 18,179 25.62% 6,425 1.90% 476 25,080
Nodaway 62.31% 5,593 35.34% 3,172 2.35% 211 8,976
Oregon 65.28% 2,886 32.10% 1,419 2.62% 116 4,421
Osage 77.05% 5,330 21.28% 1,472 1.68% 116 6,918
Ozark 69.17% 3,080 28.32% 1,261 2.52% 112 4,453
Pemiscot 56.78% 3,596 42.18% 2,671 1.04% 66 6,333
Perry 70.98% 5,669 27.34% 2,184 1.68% 134 7,987
Pettis 63.13% 10,840 34.37% 5,902 2.50% 429 17,171
Phelps 65.39% 11,893 31.88% 5,798 2.73% 497 18,188
Pike 62.52% 4,576 35.26% 2,581 2.21% 162 7,319
Platte 56.24% 25,617 42.09% 19,171 1.67% 759 45,547
Polk 70.52% 9,252 27.29% 3,580 2.19% 287 13,119
Pulaski 67.00% 9,092 30.94% 4,199 2.06% 280 13,571
Putnam 72.46% 1,673 25.42% 587 2.12% 49 2,309
Ralls 64.16% 3,231 34.47% 1,736 1.37% 69 5,036
Randolph 67.05% 6,667 30.48% 3,031 2.47% 246 9,944
Ray 56.11% 5,805 41.21% 4,264 2.68% 277 10,346
Reynolds 60.29% 1,927 36.14% 1,155 3.57% 114 3,196
Ripley 71.12% 3,743 26.52% 1,396 2.36% 124 5,263
Saline 56.03% 5,096 41.62% 3,785 2.35% 214 9,095
Schuyler 60.55% 1,174 35.95% 697 3.51% 68 1,939
Scotland 64.36% 1,246 33.21% 643 2.43% 47 1,936
Scott 68.37% 11,623 30.13% 5,122 1.49% 254 16,999
Shannon 61.28% 2,260 35.25% 1,300 3.47% 128 3,688
Shelby 67.70% 2,188 29.89% 966 2.41% 78 3,232
St. Charles 59.66% 110,732 38.68% 71,798 1.65% 3,067 185,597
St. Clair 65.26% 3,019 31.56% 1,460 3.18% 147 4,626
St. Francois 58.65% 13,248 39.12% 8,837 2.24% 505 22,590
St. Louis City 16.03% 22,617 82.65% 116,654 1.32% 1,864 141,135
St. Louis County 42.53% 223,102 56.18% 294,735 1.29% 6,791 524,628
Ste. Genevieve 50.25% 4,055 47.25% 3,813 2.50% 202 8,070
Stoddard 73.81% 9,496 24.51% 3,153 1.69% 217 12,866
Stone 73.74% 11,780 24.54% 3,920 1.72% 274 15,974
Sullivan 62.04% 1,610 34.99% 908 2.97% 77 2,595
Taney 72.72% 15,713 25.28% 5,462 2.00% 433 21,608
Texas 70.77% 7,618 26.67% 2,871 2.55% 275 10,764
Vernon 67.57% 5,756 30.29% 2,580 2.15% 183 8,519
Warren 62.35% 9,150 35.56% 5,219 2.09% 307 14,676
Washington 58.12% 5,008 39.48% 3,402 2.39% 206 8,616
Wayne 66.28% 3,790 31.67% 1,811 2.05% 117 5,718
Webster 69.40% 10,702 28.58% 4,407 2.02% 312 15,421
Worth 63.36% 664 32.54% 341 4.10% 43 1,048
Wright 73.29% 5,831 24.55% 1,953 2.16% 172 7,956


Democratic primary [edit]

Missouri
Missouri Democratic primary, February 7, 2012
Candidate Votes percentage Delegates
Barack Obama 64,366 88.39% 89
Randall Terry 1,998 2.74% -
John Wolfe, Jr. 1,000 1.37% -
Darcy Richardson 873 1.20% -
uncommitted 4,580 6.29% -


Republican primary election and caucuses [edit]

United States presidential election in Missouri, 2012
Missouri
2008 ←
 February 7, 2012 (2012-02-07)
 → 2016
  Rick Santorum by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg Mitt Romney by Gage Skidmore 6.jpg Ron Paul, official Congressional photo portrait, 2007.jpg
Candidate Rick Santorum Mitt Romney Ron Paul
Party Republican Republican Republican
Home state Pennsylvania Massachusetts Texas
Delegate count 13 31 4
Popular vote 139,272 63,882 30,647
Percentage 55.23% 25.33% 12.15%

Missouri Republican Presidential Primary Election Results by County, 2012.svg
Primary results by county. Santorum won all counties.

The Missouri Republican 2012 primary took place on February 7[2] and the caucuses ran from March 15 to March 24, 2012,[3] except for one rescheduled for April 10. The primary election did not determine which delegates will be sent to the national convention; this is instead determined indirectly by the caucuses and directly by the Missouri Republican congressional-district conventions April 21 and the state convention June 2.[4][5][6]

The unusual situation of having both the primary election and the caucus for the same party in the same election year in Missouri arose as a result of a change in the nominating rules of the Republican Party. State primaries in Missouri were previously held in early February. In September 2008, the Republican National Committee adopted a set of rules which included a provision that no states except Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada were allowed to begin the process of delegate selection (including binding primary elections) before the first Tuesday in March of an election year.[7] In 2011, the Republican-controlled Missouri General Assembly attempted to move the primary election to mid-March, but the bill was vetoed by Democratic Governor Jay Nixon because of a provision limiting his power to fill vacancies in statewide elected offices. In a compromise solution, it was decided that Republican primary election would be made non-binding and instead delegates would be nominated by separate caucuses in late March, a move estimated to cost the state $7–8 million.[8]

This marks the first time since 1996 that Missouri Republicans used a caucus system to nominate delegates to the Republican National Convention.[8]

Republican primary election [edit]

The primary was not to affect the selection of Missouri's delegates to the 2012 Republican National Convention, so it had no official effect on the nomination and was widely described beforehand as a "beauty contest". However it was seen as an opportunity for Rick Santorum to face off against Mitt Romney due to the absence of Newt Gingrich, who missed the filing deadline[9] and was not on the ballot. Santorum was the only candidate to actively campaign in the state ahead of the primary.[10]

The primary election was won by Santorum, who also won the Colorado and Minnesota Republican caucuses held that day.[11]

There were 326,438 total votes cast by party ballot[12] (including votes for Democratic, Libertarian and Constitution Party candidates),[13] a turnout of 7.99%[14] of 4,085,582 registered voters. Noting the low Republican turnout, NPR found voters apathetic because the primary was nonbinding.[15]

Results with 100.0% (3,134 of 3,134 precincts reporting):[16]

Missouri Republican primary, 2012[17]
Candidate[12] Votes Percentage
Rick Santorum 139,272 55.23%
Mitt Romney 63,882 25.33%
Ron Paul 30,647 12.15%
Uncommitted 9,853 3.91%
Rick Perry 2,456 0.97%
Herman Cain 2,306 0.91%
Michele Bachmann 1,680 0.67%
Jon Huntsman 1,044 0.41%
Gary Johnson 536 0.21%
Michael J. Meehan 356 0.14%
Keith Drummond 153 0.06%
Totals 252,185 100.00%
Key: Withdrew prior to contest.

Republican primary caucuses [edit]

The Missouri Republican caucuses occurred March 15–24, 2012,[3] although a second caucus for St. Charles County had to be scheduled for April 10 due to irregularities at its March 17 caucus (see below).

The county caucuses elect delegates to congressional district conventions and the Missouri Republican Party state convention, which in turn elect 49 of Missouri's 52 delegates to the national convention.[5][18] However, no straw poll is released to indicate levels of support to the general public. According to the state party, "Caucus-goers will be voting for delegates, and with few exceptions, these delegates will not be bound to a particular candidate. Because there is no vote on candidate preference, neither the Missouri GOP nor any election authority will have or release any data regarding the ‘winner’ of the caucuses."[19]

Despite the nonbinding nature of the February primary, caucuses had the option to use its result as the basis for delegate allocation. Santorum was to appear personally at some caucuses, which The New York Times described as "part of the campaign’s county-by-county strategy to try to outflank Mr. Romney and catch him in the delegate race".[20]

Results [edit]

The county caucuses elect delegates to the congressional district conventions and the state convention. Delegates to the national convention will be elected at each of those conventions. Typically, the body of a caucus votes on slates of delegates prepared by leaders of factions and coalitions within the caucus.

The following table shows who won the majority or plurality of delegates for each county according to available unofficial reports.

Election results by county. Dark green indicates counties won by Santorum, gold, those won by Paul, orange indicates those won by Romney, and purple, Gingrich. The counties indicated in black are Barry County and Laclede County, in which Romney/Santorum and Paul/Santorum respectively tied for the win. Dark gray indicates uncommitted counties.

Caucus results by number of counties won

Candidate Counties
Rick Santorum 83
Mitt Romney 17
Ron Paul 11
Newt Gingrich 4
Uncommitted 0
Unknown 0
Total 115

Caucus results by county

County Winner Delegates [21] District Source
Adair Romney 9 6th [22]
Andrew Santorum 8 6th
Atchison Santorum 3 6th
Audrain Santorum 7 4th
Barry Romney 14 7th [23][24]
Barton Santorum 7 4th
Bates Santorum 7 4th
Benton Santorum 9 4th
Bollinger Santorum 6 8th
Boone Paul 53 4th [25][26][27]
Buchanan Romney 28 6th [28][29]
Butler Santorum 17 8th
Caldwell Romney 4 6th [30]
Callaway Romney 17 3rd [31]
Camden Santorum 12 3rd [32]
Cape Girardeau Santorum 36 8th [33]
Carroll Santorum 5 6th
Carter Santorum 3 8th [34]
Cass Santorum 43 4th [35]
Cedar Santorum 6 4th
Chariton Santorum 4 6th [36]
Christian Santorum 37 7th [37]
Clark Santorum 3 6th
Clay Romney 23+55 5th,6th [38]
Clinton Romney 9 6th [39]
Cole Romney 35 3rd [27]
Cooper Santorum 8 4th
Crawford Santorum 9 8th
Dade Santorum 5 4th
Dallas Romney 7 4th [40]
Daviess Santorum 4 6th
DeKalb Santorum 5 6th
Dent Santorum 7 8th
Douglas Paul 7 8th [41]
Dunklin Santorum 11 8th
Franklin Paul 40 3rd [27][42]
Gasconade Santorum 7 3rd
Gentry Santorum 3 6th
Greene Paul 111 7th [27]
Grundy Paul 5 6th [43]
Harrison Romney 4 6th [44]
Henry Santorum 9 4th
Hickory Santorum 5 4th
Holt Santorum 3 6th
Howard Santorum 4 4th
Howell Santorum 16 8th
Iron Santorum 3 8th
Jackson Paul 144+35 5th,6th [45][46]
Jasper Santorum 46 7th [47]
Jefferson Santorum 15+39+19 2nd,3rd,8th [48][49]
Johnson Santorum 18 4th
Knox Santorum 2 6th
Laclede Paul 16 4th [43]
Lafayette Romney 14 5th [50]
Lawrence Santorum 17 7th [51]
Lewis Santorum 4 6th
Lincoln Santorum 19 3rd [52]
Linn Santorum 5 6th
Livingston Gingrich 6 6th [53]
Macon Santorum 7 6th
Madison Santorum 5 8th
Maries Santorum 5 3rd
Marion Santorum 12 6th
McDonald Santorum 8 7th
Mercer Santorum 2 6th
Miller Romney 12 3rd [32]
Mississippi Santorum 5 8th
Moniteau Santorum 7 4th
Monroe Santorum 4 6th
Montgomery Santorum 5 3rd
Morgan Santorum 8 4th
New Madrid Santorum 7 8th
Newton Santorum 26 7th [47]
Nodaway Paul 8 6th [43]
Oregon Santorum 4 8th [54]
Osage Santorum 8 3rd
Ozark Santorum 5 8th [24]
Pemiscot Santorum 6 8th
Perry Gingrich 8 8th
Pettis Romney 16 4th [55]
Phelps Romney 17 8th [56]
Pike Santorum 7 6th
Platte Gingrich 35 6th [57]
Polk Santorum 13 7th
Pulaski Santorum 14 4th
Putnam Santorum 3 6th
Ralls Santorum 5 6th
Randolph Romney 10 4th [58]
Ray Santorum 8 5th
Reynolds Santorum 3 8th
Ripley Santorum 5 8th
St. Charles Paul 59+88 2nd,3rd [59]
St. Clair Santorum 5 4th
St. Francois Santorum 19 8th [60]
St. Louis Romney [a] 67+250 1st,2nd [27][61]
Saint Louis (city) Paul 36 1st [45][46]
Sainte Genevieve Santorum 6 8th
Saline Santorum 8 5th [62]
Schuyler Santorum 2 6th
Scotland Santorum 2 6th
Scott Santorum 17 8th
Shannon Santorum 3 8th
Shelby Santorum 4 6th
Stoddard Romney 14 8th [63]
Stone Santorum 16 7th
Sullivan Santorum 3 6th
Taney Paul 22 7th [64]
Texas Gingrich 11 8th
Vernon Santorum 8 4th
Warren Santorum 13 3rd
Washington Santorum 7 8th
Wayne Santorum 6 8th
Webster Santorum 11+4 4th,7th
Worth Santorum 2 6th
Wright Santorum 9 8th
Notes
  1. ^ A separate caucus was held in each township.

Controversies [edit]

St. Charles County [edit]

The caucus for St. Charles County(SCC) was convened Saturday, March 17 in the gymnasium at Francis Howell North High School but ended without electing any delegates or conducting any other business.[65] Referring to members of the SCC Republican Central Committee, the Daily Caller wrote, "Committee members disregarded Robert’s Rules of Order when nominations and motions came from the floor. A rule banning recording devices was never voted on, leading to claims that the proceedings purposely lacked transparency. In addition, the caucus adjourned without the two-thirds vote required to end a caucus with unfinished business."[66]

Eugene Dokes was the chairman of the SCC Republican Central Committee, and he appointed the members of the subcommittee that organized the caucus. Bryan Spencer was a member of the Central Committee, and Dokes appointed him chairman of the caucus subcommittee.[67][68] Dokes was to serve as the temporary chairman of the caucus, and a caucus chairman was to be elected by the body of SCC Republicans present at the caucus.

According to Bryce Steinhoff, the Coordinator for the Paul campaign in SCC, Spencer told him at a committee meeting on March 8 that he would work to challenge the St. Charles delegation on a technicality if delegates were not distributed proportionally.[69] Brent Stafford (a Paul supporter and member of the SCC Republican Central Committee) was chair of the caucus in 2008 and sought the chairmanship again March 17. He stated after the March 17 caucus that Eugene Dokes had conspired with others to prevent any Romney or Paul supporters from being elected as delegates. Stafford said that the caucus is an entity separate from the County Committee and sets its own rules, and that he had hired the president of the Missouri State Association of Parliamentarians as his consultant for the caucus. Stafford said that by far the majority of attendees were either Romney or Paul supporters and that prior to the caucus he had been approached by Romney supporters. He said they proposed to form a coalition that would elect Stafford as caucus Chairman and a Romney supporter as Secretary.[70][71][72]

March 17 caucus [edit]

At the start of the caucus, temporary chair Eugene Dokes announced that recording the proceedings would not be allowed. There was an uproar when Dokes disallowed attempts to change that rule. The proceedings were delayed about twenty minutes while Kenny Suitter, a video photographer, refused to stop recording. He turned off his camera after numerous police appeared and occupied the gym floor.[73][72][74][75] After the Pledge of Allegiance, Dokes went on to appoint a Parliamentarian, a Credentials Committee, and a Rules Committee, ignoring loud calls on points of order, as well as heckling, from the crowd.[76] Stafford said later that those appointments are to be made by the caucus chair, not by the temporary chair.[72] Dokes went on to "open the floor for the election of the chairman", but ignored numerous nominations of Stafford and chants of Stafford's name. He called for ayes and nays for Matt Ehlen as chair, and stated that "The ayes have it", ignoring loud and prolonged objections. Around this time, Suitter resumed recording and was arrested.[73] Matt Ehlen took the podium as chairman and attempted to call the house to order, then warned that "The police are getting ready to shut us down." Ehlen said amidst continued noise that they wanted a "rational, fair caucus", but shortly took from Dokes a motion to adjourn. It was seconded by Bryan Spencer, after which Ehlen called for ayes and nays. He declared the caucus adjourned, his chairmanship lasting less than three minutes.[76] Less than four minutes after Ehlen closed the meeting, he announced, "I have been informed that you are now officially ordered to leave the building, and if you do not leave the building, you will be arrested for trespassing."[77] More police and a helicopter arrived around that time.[72][78] Speaking later for the St. Peters Police, Melissa Doss said that Dokes ordered the shutdown after consulting with police and school officials. Dokes said later that he did give the order after a shutdown was recommended by police.[79][80]

Stafford, saying that the caucus had been ended in violation of parliamentary rules, attempted to reconvene the caucus on the school grounds outside and was arrested.[72]

Discussion after the failed caucus [edit]

In a March 20 radio interview by Jamie Allman, Dokes said that he had been given bad advice about the "appointment" of the chair. He said "I was told that we could take ... an announcement for a chair, and if [in] that same announcement and that same sentence it was said 'I nominate this person and I close all nominations' that that was fair and that was legal." He also said, "What we were hoping to do, I think, was not have a full takeover of one particular group where they might only be represented by one percent of the county but yet they would get all of the delegates ... and I think the way that we went about trying to make that happen was just not done perfectly.[68][67]

Blogger Bob McCarty wrote on March 22nd that a member of the SCC Central Committee (later identified as Brandy Pedersen) had a few days after the caucus given him copies of a letter drafted by the Santorum campaign, the letter being addressed to state party leaders and having a blank line for Dokes's signature.[81][82] It was an unsigned draft stating that the SCC Central Committee had voted not to conduct another caucus and was opposed to any effort to force another caucus. The letter cited "concerns regarding the safety and security of attendees" of any new caucus and blamed "certain forces" that "colluded to disrupt our county caucuses, threatened those in attendance and succeeded in forcing an abrupt end to the proceedings before delegates could be allocated or elected." The letter asked that delegates be allocated in proportion to the results of either the February 7 poll or the straw poll taken of those attending the SCC caucus March 17.[83] McCarty wrote that Pedersen had given him some of Dokes's emails, and he quoted part of one as, "Personally, I agree with the letter but I want to get all of your thoughts on it." He quoted other emails by Dokes to the effect that the letter had come from the Santorum campaign and that Dokes had without revealing its origin sent copies to committee members for discussion.[81][82] Pedersen told Jamie Allman on his radio program that she had been a Santorum supporter, that there was "a war within the committee", and that many committee members strongly opposed the letter and wanted to recaucus.[84][85]

On March 23, there appeared a four-minute video made (apparently secretly) at a March 19 meeting of the Lewis & Clark Pachyderms, a local Republican club of which Bryan Spencer is a director and Matt Ehlen is a former president.[86][87] It showed Spencer calling for those at the meeting to publicly rally around Eugene Dokes, as "he is being publicly crucified for fighting for us." He asked for those present to contact the media and to post online in support of Dokes, whom he said was "taking the brunt of the hate mail." Spencer also said that the rules imposed on the caucus were designed by Spencer and the Central Committee "so that everyone would have a voice" and so delegate assignments would be proportional to each candidate's turnout at the caucus (rather than being determined by any caucus majority led by Paul supporters). Spencer, who is running for State Representative, said that he himself would not be able to support Dokes publicly, since he had been told by the state party to keep quiet, he lacked credibility (being one of the caucus organizers), and he had been told by his campaign to "lay low and let other people carry the flag".[88][89] Dokes is also running for State Representative.[90]

April 10 Recaucus [edit]

On March 23, the Missouri Republican Party announced a new caucus for St. Charles County at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 10 at the convention center in St. Charles. State Republican Chairman David Cole was designated to serve as temporary caucus chairman until participants could choose a caucus chairman.[91] The venue was reserved for five hours.[92] Santorum suspended his presidential campaign on the morning of April 10, and Paul supporters at the entrances of the recaucus held signs welcoming Santorum supporters. Brent Stafford defeated Cole 480-402 in the election for Caucus Chairman, and another Paul supporter, Kyle Albert, was elected Secretary. All three delegate slates chosen—those for SCC's delegations to the 2nd and 3rd congressional district conventions and the state party convention—consisted of Paul supporters.[93][59][94][95]

Brent Stafford Trespassing Trial [edit]

On June 19, Stafford pleaded not guilty to the March 17 trespassing charge,[96] and his trial began July 24 in St. Peters municipal court. Before the trial, there was a scuffle outside involving Stafford supporters and Dokes and his wife. Dokes said the Stafford supporters were displaying Dokes campaign signs that they had stolen and defaced.[97]

At the trial, Sgt. Tim Hickey testified, "[Stafford] was attempting to keep people from leaving." Dokes was called to testify at the trial.[98][97]

Stafford was acquitted of the trespassing charge at the conclusion of his trial on July 31. A motion for acquittal was granted by Municipal Judge Donald Kohl after prosecution witnesses had been cross-examined but before any defense witnesses had been presented.[99] Officers had testified that they singled out Stafford for arrest because he was outside urging people to regroup.[100]

Kenneth Suitter was to be tried separately.[100]

Jefferson County [edit]

Filing a complaint with the state party, the Romney and Paul campaigns claimed jointly that there was "serious and prejudicial misconduct" at the Jefferson County caucus March 17.[101][102][103] One of the complainants said that Bob Boyer was elected Caucus Chairman and was a Ron Paul supporter,[102] and that when Santorum supporters realized they did not have the numbers to control the outcome, they intentionally caused a delay by removing registration materials needed to conduct caucus business. The complaint says that delegate voting did not begin until eight and a half hours after the caucus was to start---"after a substantial portion of the caucus attendees left in frustration, changing the make-up of the electorate". The county chair said that the papers were taken by mistake by a volunteer who had to leave early. The two campaigns said that the delegates elected for Jefferson County were loyal to Santorum, and the complaint asked the party not to seat them at the district and state conventions.[49][48]

Other [edit]

There were controversies surrounding the caucuses in Clay and Cass counties. The Missouri Republican Party ruled later that the slates of delegates elected at those caucuses were valid.[104]

District and State Conventions [edit]

The following table shows who won the national delegates for each congressional district and statewide.

Convention Results[105][106][107][108]
Candidate 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th State Party
leaders		 Total
Mitt Romney 1 1 2 3 0 1 1 3 19 0 31
Rick Santorum 1 2 1 0 0 1 2 0 6 0 13
Ron Paul 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 4
Newt Gingrich 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Uncommitted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3
Total 24 25 3 52

See also [edit]

References [edit]

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