JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — In an announcement that instantly shook up Missouri's political landscape, U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt said Monday morning he would not run for reelection in 2022.
"After 14 general election victories — three to county office, seven to the United States House of Representatives and four statewide elections — I won't be a candidate for reelection to the United States Senate next year," Blunt, a Republican first elected to the Senate in 2010, said in a Twitter announcement.
"I want to thank my family, and thank the great team that came together to help me work for you," Blunt said. "Most importantly, thanks to Missourians, whether you voted for me or not, for the opportunity to work for you and a better future for our state and our country."
Blunt's retirement potentially clears the way for a crowded GOP primary next year in Missouri, a state that has increasingly shifted toward Republicans over the last decade.
Attorney General Eric Schmitt, who won a four-year term last November after being appointed to the post in 2019 by Gov. Mike Parson.
He has repeatedly delved into national issues, which last year included joining an ill-fated Texas lawsuit that challenged the results of the 2020 election. He also sued China in federal court over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Former Gov. Eric Greitens, who resigned amid scandal in 2018, said last week in a radio interview that he was "evaluating" a campaign. In that same interview, days before Blunt announced his retirement, Greitens criticized the senator for not adequately backing former President Donald Trump.
Jean Evans, former executive director of the Missouri GOP, said Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Ballwin, and U.S. Rep. Jason Smith, R-Salem, are also "in the mix."
Another potential candidate, this one a political outsider: former NASCAR driver Carl Edwards, who lives in Columbia, Missouri.
"I've heard that expressed, but it's been 6, 7 months ago," said John Hancock, former chairman of the Missouri GOP.
