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How this rural MO county became deeply Republican
Lincoln County shows how Missouri became a Republican stronghold and the question voters face if former Gov. Eric Greitens is the GOP nominee for U.S. Senate.
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Republicans turned rural Missouri deep red. But will they send Eric Greitens to the Senate?
Who is Eric Greitens? A guide to the former governor’s latest and biggest controversies
Residents talk about how Lincoln County has shifted Republican
Former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens has a long history of scandal and controversy, with much of it now following him into the U.S. Senate race.
Greitens is in a large GOP field for Senate, but has proven much more divisive than other major candidates. Some Republicans have called on him to drop out and Democratic candidates have said they can defeat him if he’s nominated.
Here’s a look at some of the main controversies that have followed Greitens.
Allegations of sexual assault
In 2018, Greitens was accused of sexually assaulting and blackmailing his former hairdresser, with whom he was having an affair. The woman alleged that he took a nude photo without her consent to use as blackmail to keep her from talking about their relationship.
She testified to a House committee under oath that in March 2015 he had taped her hands to pull-up rings, blindfolded her, spit water into her mouth, ripped open her shirt, pulled down her pants and taken a photo of her.
Greitens resigned as governor, leaving office in June 2018 as the House headed toward impeachment.
Domestic violence allegations
In March 2022, Greitens’ ex-wife, Sheena Greitens, filed an affidavit alleging domestic violence by the former governor.
Sheena Greitens, a professor at the University of Texas-Austin, said that Eric Greitens had knocked her down and had taken away her cell phone, keys and wallet to prevent her from leaving their home in Innsbrook in eastern Missouri. She also alleged that one of their children said Eric Greitens hit him and had knocked a tooth loose.
Eric Greitens has denied the allegations, instead painting them as part of a political conspiracy against him.
Campaign finance
In 2020, Greitens was fined $178,000 by the state ethics commission for two campaign finance violations.
The commission agreed to forgive the fine if Greitens paid $38,000.
The Missouri Ethics Commission said in a consent decree that while there were reasonable grounds to believe Greitens’ campaign broke Missouri law, its investigation “found no evidence of any wrongdoing on part of Eric Greitens, individually, and no evidence Gov. Greitens knew” about any violations.
It concluded that Greitens’ campaign failed to report spending by a federal PAC and his political nonprofit, A New Missouri Inc., as in-kind donations.
Kansas City police
Last month, Greitens participated in a ride-along with the Kansas City Police Department. On social media, he later featured footage from the ride-along while promoting his Senate campaign.
Greitens later deleted the posts at the request of KCPD.
A criminal investigation has been launched in connection with the ride-along, and one member of the department has been placed on paid leave. Missouri law prohibits Kansas City police from promoting politicians on the job.
