Lieutenant governor candidate Thompson Rehder files campaign report

With the Aug. 6, 2024, Republican primary a little more than a year away, state Sen. Holly Thompson Rehder's nascent campaign for Missouri lieutenant governor has thus far raised $208,056.65, according to a July 17 filing with Missouri Ethics Commission by Friends of Holly Rehder.

The filing shows seven donations totaling $13,200 were received between April 1 and June 30 for the hopeful, who currently represents Senate District 27, a seven-county area comprised of Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Iron, Madison, Perry, Reynolds and Scott counties.

Thompson Rehder's campaign shows a cash-on-hand amount of $167,361.10.

No other GOP candidate has announced to date for lieutenant governor, while one Democrat, state Rep. Richard Brown of Kansas City, has thrown his hat in the ring.

Brown, according to his own MEC disclosure, has raised $1,000 so far in his campaign.

Thompson Rehder of Scott City announced her bid for the state's No. 2 job July 11.

History

If the most recent lieutenant governor race is any guide, it may well take more than $2 million to win the four-year position.

In 2020, incumbent GOP Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe raised $2,394,468 in a successful election bid.

Kehoe announced May 16 his candidacy for governor, hoping to succeed term-limited Gov. Mike Parson, who cannot seek reelection in 2024.

The role of lieutenant governor was a springboard for Parson into the Governor's Mansion in Jefferson City.

Lt. Gov, Parson succeeded Gov. Eric Greitens on June 1, 2018, upon Greitens' resignation following a scandal-plagued tenure.

Thompson Rehder, who served eight years in the state House before election to the General Assembly's upper chamber three years ago, has proven a prodigious fundraiser.

In the 2020 Senate District 27 Republican primary, Thompson Rehder raised $282,744.48 to win a close contest against fellow Republican Kathy Swan, now a state Labor & Industrial Relations commissioner.

Thompson Rehder prevailed in her race against Swan by 141 votes out of 33,527 cast and went on to defeat Democrat Donnie Owens in the general election, taking 77% of the vote.