The 2020 Missouri gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the

Governor of Missouri A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political_regions, political region, ranking under the Head of State, head of state and in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of ...

, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

, elections to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, and various

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

and local elections. Incumbent

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Governor

Mike Parson Michael Lynn Parson (born September 17, 1955) is an American politician serving as the 57th governor of Missouri since 2018. A member of the Republican Party, Parson served in the Missouri House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011 and in the ...

ran for and was elected to a full term in office. Parson was elected as

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

but became governor on June 1, 2018, after incumbent

Eric Greitens Eric Robert Greitens (; born April 10, 1974) is a former American politician who was the 56th governor of Missouri from January 2017 until his resignation in June 2018 amid allegations of sexual assault and campaign finance impropriety. Born a ...

resigned under threat of

impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

by the

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

. Parson declared his bid for a full term on September 8, 2019. State Auditor

Nicole Galloway Nicole Marie Galloway (née Rogge; born June 13, 1982) is an American accountant and politician who served as the State Auditor of Missouri between 2015 and 2023. She was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Missouri in the 2020 election, lo ...

, Missouri's only Democratic statewide officer and only female statewide officer, was the Democratic nominee and if elected, would have become Missouri's first female governor. In October 2020, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' identified this state election as one of eight whose outcomes could affect partisan balance during post-

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

. Despite most news agencies characterizing the race as only leaning Republican, Mike Parson went on to win the election by a landslide of 16.4%, widely outperforming all election polling as well as justifying the former swing state's trend towards the GOP. He even exceeded Donald Trump's statewide victory margin in the concurrent presidential election, which was actually greater than that in neighboring

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

for the first time in 104 years. Galloway suffered the largest margin of defeat for a Democratic gubernatorial candidate in

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

since Betty Hearnes' 29-point loss in

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Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

, incumbent governor of Missouri and former state senator

Eliminated in primary

*Saundra McDowell, U.S. Air Force veteran and Republican nominee for

Missouri state auditor The state auditor of Missouri is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of Missouri. Thirty-eight individuals have occupied the office of state auditor since statehood. The incumbent is Nicole Gal ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Jim Neely James W. Neely (born 1951) is an American politician and physician who served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from 2013 to 2021. He is also the long-term care medical director of the Cameron Regional Medical Center. Early l ...

state representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

from the 8th district *Raleigh Ritter, rancher and businessman

Declined

Jay Ashcroft John Robert "Jay" Ashcroft (born July 12, 1973) is an American attorney, engineer and politician serving as the 40th and current Secretary of State of Missouri since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, he is the son of former U.S. Attorney ...

Missouri Secretary of State The people below have served as the Secretary of State of the U.S. state of Missouri. List Gallery File:Warren E. Hearnes.jpg, Warren E. Hearnes File:James C. Kirkpatrick.jpg, James C. Kirkpatrick File:Rep Roy Blunt.jpg, Roy Blunt File:Matt ...

, former governor of Missouri *Tony Monetti, retired bomber pilot, assistant dean of aviation at

University of Central Missouri The University of Central Missouri (UCM) is a public university in Warrensburg, Missouri. In 2019, enrollment was 11,229 students from 49 states and 59 countries on its 1,561-acre campus. UCM offers 150 programs of study, including 10 pre-profes ...

, and Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

* Eric Morrison, community leader and pastor * Antoin Johnson * Jimmie Matthews * Robin Quaethem

Declined

Sly James Sylvester "Sly" James, Jr. (born December 9, 1951) is an American politician who served as the 54th mayor of Kansas City, Missouri from 2011 to 2019. James has lived in Kansas City's Union Hill neighborhood. As mayor, he was known for wearing bow ...

, former

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

Jason Kander Jason David Kander (born May 4, 1981) is an American attorney, author, veteran, and politician. A Democrat, he served as the 39th secretary of state of Missouri, from 2013 to 2017. He had previously served as a member of the Missouri House of R ...

, former

, Democratic nominee for

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

, former candidate for Mayor of Kansas City in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Claire McCaskill Claire Conner McCaskill (; born July 24, 1953) is an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Missouri from 2007 to 2019 and as State Auditor of Missouri from 1999 to 2007. McCaskill is a native of Rolla, Missouri. She gr ...

, former U.S. Senator *

Scott Sifton Richard Prescott Sifton Jr. (born May 7, 1974) is an American politician and lawyer who was a member of the Missouri Senate for the 1st district from 2013 to 2021. Sifton took office in 2013 after defeating incumbent Republican Senator Jim Lembke ...

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

from the 1st district and former

from the 96th district (endorsed Galloway)

Endorsements

Results

Missouri Governor Democratic primary, 2020

Other candidates

Libertarian Party

Nominee

*Rik Combs, U.S. Air Force veteran

Results

Green Party

Nominee

*Jerome Bauer

Results

General election

Predictions

Polling

;Eric Greitens vs Nicole Galloway ;Mike Parson vs Jason Kander ;Mike Parson vs. Scott Sifton

Endorsements

Results

Notes

;Partisan clients

References

External links

;Official campaign websites
Rik Combs (L) for Governor

Nicole Galloway (D) for Governor

Mike Parson (R) for Governor
{{Missouri elections

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Declined

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Declined

Endorsements

Results

Other candidates

Libertarian Party

Nominee

Results

Green Party

Nominee

Results

General election

Predictions

Polling

Endorsements

Results

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links