Schweich retained by wide margin in auditor race

Missouri voters re-elected Republican Tom Schweich as State Auditor by more than 76 percent with 2,014 of 3,331 precincts reporting Tuesday evening.

"I'd like to thank Missourians for entrusting me once again to be their State Auditor," Schweich said. "It's a tremendous honor. I've tried to be an aggressive but nonpartisan auditor and my focus has been rooting out waste, fraud and abuse, wherever they rear their heads in Missouri government."

The auditor's race was the only statewide official race on the ballot, and though the incumbent ran against two third-party candidates, they posed little challenge.

Missouri Libertarian Party treasurer Sean O'Toole garnered a little more than 17 percent of the vote, while Constitution Party candidate Rodney Farthing achieved a little more than 6 percent, according to unofficial figures from the Missouri Secretary of State's office.

Democrats decided not to field a candidate of their own, a phenomenon that hasn't happened in a statewide race for 140 years. Democrat Jay Swearingen pulled out of the race before filing began.

Schweich won 77 percent of the vote in Perry County and 83 percent of the vote in Cape Girardeau, Bollinger and Scott counties.

tgraef@semissourian.com