KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The U.S. Senate campaign of Eric Greitens, the embattled former Missouri governor, has incurred more than $43,000 in legal bills, far more than any of his opponents.
Greitens has spent more on legal expenses than every other major Republican candidate combined, according to campaign finance reports filed last week with the Federal Election Commission.
The new reports come as Greitens fights to remain competitive in the GOP primary after allegations by his ex-wife that he hit one of their children, as well as knocked her over, threatened her and took away her phone and keys. Greitens has denied the allegations.
Greitens stepped down as governor in 2018 after he was accused of sexually assaulting and blackmailing his former hairdresser. He is attempting to mount a political comeback through his Senate campaign and has ignored calls from high-ranking Republicans to drop out after the latest allegations.
The exact purpose of Greitens' legal spending isn't clear from FEC filings. But Greitens faced a complaint in the fall that he improperly moved funds from his old campaign for governor to his new Senate campaign. The Missouri Ethics Commission dismissed the complaint in March.
The Senate campaign has incurred $43,162 in "legal consulting" expenses — all of it to Dickinson Wright, a full-service law firm with offices throughout the United States and Canada. The legal consulting expenses are listed as debts, meaning the campaign hasn't yet paid Dickinson Wright.
Dickinson Wright represented Greitens during a previous investigation by the Missouri Ethics Commission into his campaign for governor, which resulted in the commission fining the campaign $178,000. He agreed to pay $38,000 and have the rest of the money forgiven so long as he did not commit any new campaign finance violations.
Greitens' gubernatorial campaign has continued to spend on legal fees since the ethics commission investigation concluded in February 2020, paying $54,265 in legal fees — most of it to Dickinson Wright.
Greitens' campaign declined to comment on the record.
Other Senate campaigns by Missouri Republicans have spent far less on legal services.
One of Greitens' Republican opponents, Attorney General Eric Schmitt, paid The Gober Group, a law firm based in Virginia, $7,450 for legal fees in January and February. He's spent a total of $26,966 on legal fees since April 2021.
Another, Rep. Vicky Hartzler, does not have any disbursements associated with legal fees, but paid $12,000 last quarter to e-Numerus for compliance services. Many campaigns often turn to accounting firms to ensure they're following federal fundraising rules.
Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz has spent $5,000 on legal services this year. Some candidates reported no legal expenses since beginning their campaigns.
The Greitens campaign legal expenses are not necessarily eyebrow-raising, especially for a campaign dealing with a complaint against it, a campaign finance expert said.
"The flip side is that the vagueness of the report raises questions," said Dan Weiner, director of the Elections and Government Program at the Brennan Center for Justice.
"And whenever you have a candidate that, quite frankly, has some degree of somewhat checkered personal history, it does raise the question when they put some sort of vague 'legal fees,'" given that Greitens is also incurring legal expenses in his personal life, Weiner said.
Though no one has alleged Greitens is using campaign funds to pay for his ongoing court dispute with his ex-wife, University of Texas-Austin professor Sheena Greitens, Weiner said such payments would be illegal.
Greitens is represented by Columbia attorney Gary Stamper in the court case. Greitens has also used another attorney, Timothy Parlatore. Greitens latest FEC filing shows no payments to either man.
Greitens' campaign raised the third-most among Republican candidates in the first quarter of 2022, pulling in $378,635. The leader, Hartzler, raised $497,224.
In December, the Campaign Legal Center alleged Greitens failed to disclose money that his gubernatorial campaign fund spent on behalf of his Senate campaign. The CLC filed a complaint with Missouri ethics authorities after earlier complaining to the Federal Elections Commission that he improperly spent at least $100,000 on his Senate campaign.
The Missouri Ethics Commission dismissed the complaint on March 11. The commission found that there were no improper payments.
Greitens has been considered a frontrunner in the Republican Senate race, but the full effects of the abuse allegations aren't yet known.
Polls show a competitive race. An independent poll last month from the Trafalgar Group found a competitive race with Hartzler pulling in 24.9% of the vote and Greitens bringing in 24.3%. Hartzler's internal polls also have her up one percentage point, but a poll conducted by Schmitt's PAC has him leading the field with 25% of the vote compared to Greitens 23% and Hartzler's 20%.
The race may ultimately come down to whether former President Donald Trump endorses. Trump released a statement praising Rep. Billy Long recently, but said it wasn't an endorsement.
Donald Trump Jr., the former president's eldest child, said during an interview on 97.1 FM Talk in St. Louis that he isn't sure whether his father will endorse in the race, but praised Greitens.
"I see who the press hates the most — that's usually the guy I like," Trump Jr. said.
