Challengers in Missouri attorney general race agree state government is ‘viciously corrupt’

Republican Will Scharf and Democrat Elad Gross disagreed on almost every issue this week during a forum of attorney general candidates in St. Louis.

They are not on the same page when it comes to dealing with violent crime or protecting speech on campus. They crossed swords over abortion rights and access to contraception. And they couldn’t agree on the integrity of the 2020 presidential election.

But Scharf and Gross were aligned on one point: They believe the state government is being manipulated by special interests to the detriment of Missouri taxpayers. And both point the finger directly at the incumbent attorney general, Andrew Bailey.

“Elad and I agree that Jefferson City is viciously corrupt,” Scharf said, adding: “The political class in this state has fundamentally failed the people of Missouri.”

Gross joked during the forum, “I told you we’re going to agree on a lot of things today,” and then declared that the Missouri attorney general’s office should create a public corruption unit.

The idea received applause from the audience – and from Scharf.

“We need serious enforcement against corruption in Missouri,” Gross said.

The pair hope to replace Bailey, a Republican who is running for a full term after being appointed to the position by Gov. Mike Parson in 2022.

Bailey was not present at the forum Monday due to scheduling conflicts. The event was sponsored by the Federalist Society, a conservative legal advocacy group whose leadership has largely supported Scharf and has been involved in nearly every high-profile conservative judicial appointment in recent decades.

Gross is running unopposed in the Aug. 6 Democratic primary, while Scharf and Bailey are locked in a heated Republican battle, with the massive fundraising effort translating into a nasty TV ad war across the state.

One of Scharf’s main lines of attack is that Bailey is taking donations from lobbyists and corporations whose interests intersect with the attorney general’s office.

Last year, for example, the attorney general had to withdraw his office from lawsuits filed by companies accused of operating illegal gambling equipment, forcing the state to hire a private attorney. The denial came after Bailey received thousands of contributions from PACs tied to the chief lobbyist of the companies suing the state.

Bailey also drew fire for accepting a $50,000 donation from a St. Louis company shortly after it filed an amicus brief in support of its efforts to handle a lead poisoning case from Missouri.

“When you look at Jefferson City today,” Scharf said Monday, “you see a political culture that is deeply tied to a very narrow group of special interests, lobbyists and political insiders.”

Bailey has denied any wrongdoing, and his campaign has noted that Scharf’s bid for attorney general is being funded by out-of-state interests, namely conservative activist Leonard Leo.

On Tuesday, an organization tied to Leo donated $2 million to support Scharf’s candidacy. Since entering the race to become attorney general, Scharf has benefited from $3.5 million in donations from the organization, making up the bulk of the money he has received in the race.

Gross is a former assistant attorney general who currently runs his own law firm in St. Louis. His legal practice focuses on the Sunshine Law. In 2021, he won a landmark Missouri Supreme Court ruling that barred public agencies from charging for time spent by attorneys reviewing public records requested under the state’s Sunshine Law.

Bailey served as general counsel to Parson before taking over as attorney general when his predecessor, Eric Schmitt, won a seat in the U.S. Senate. He previously worked as an assistant prosecutor in Warren County, as an assistant attorney general and general counsel for the Missouri Department of Corrections.

Scharf is a former assistant district attorney who worked as policy director in Gov. Eric Greitens’ brief administration. He left state government when Greitens was forced to resign in disgrace in 2018. He is currently part of the team of attorneys representing former President Donald Trump in several legal matters related to his role in the January 6, 2021 riots at the U.S. Capitol.

This story was originally published by the Missouri independent, part of the Staten Newsroom.