Greitens, Koster compete for cash in Missouri governor race

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Republican candidate for Missouri governor Eric Greitens outraised Democratic opponent Attorney General Chris Koster in recent weeks, but Koster has close to three times the cash to spend leading up to the Nov. 8 election.

Campaign finance reports filed Thursday show Navy SEAL officer Greitens raised about $4.6 million from late July through Aug. 27.

Koster raised about $2 million in cash during that time, records show.

But Koster has nearly triple the amount of cash to spend as Greitens, with close to $9.5 million compared with Greitens' $3.2 million.

Greitens spent millions of dollars leading up to a contentious and expensive four-way GOP primary Aug. 2, and he's spent more than $10 million in total on his gubernatorial bid.

He's been working to replenish his campaign coffers since the primary, and campaign-finance records show he's had some success.

After he won the GOP nomination, the Republican Governors Association gave him $3.5 million -- the majority of what he's raised recently.

Koster sat on a bigger pot of money -- more than $10.8 million in cash as of July 21 -- heading into a far less costly primary.

He's ramped up spending since then, plowing through about $3.4 million in recent weeks.

Koster spent only $4.5 million on his campaign before that, while Greitens had spent $8 million by then.

In the weeks before and after the primary, Koster also received more than $1 million in in-kind contributions.

Most came from the Democratic Governors Association political-action committee Jobs and Opportunity, which paid for negative ads against Greitens that ran before the primary.

Despite lagging behind Koster in cash on hand, Greitens has proven to be a capable fundraiser in his first bid for elected office.

Koster, who said in 2013 he planned to run for governor, has raised more than $18.8 million.

Greitens has raised about $13.4 million since February 2015.

Races for other statewide offices have been less expensive so far this election. Here's a breakdown of how much cash other candidates have heading into the final months before the Nov. 8 general election:

• Lieutenant governor: Former Democratic U.S. representative Russ Carnahan has close to $509,000. Republican state Sen. Mike Parson's report was not immediately available online after candidates' 5 p.m. deadline for filing Thursday.
• Attorney general: Republican Josh Hawley, a University of Missouri associate law professor on leave, has more than $1.1 million compared with Democrat and former Cass County prosecutor Teresa Hensley's close to $458,000.
• Secretary of state: Retired St. Louis television news anchor Robin Smith, a Democrat, has about $314,000. Republican St. Louis lawyer Jay Ashcroft -- son of John Ashcroft, a former Missouri governor, U.S. senator and U.S. attorney general -- has about $71,000.
• Treasurer: Republican state Sen. Eric Schmitt has more than $2.5 million, while former Democratic state representative Judy Baker has about $258,000.