EXCLUSIVE MPN ANALYSIS Chalk this analysis up as a win for transparency and a loss for the reliability of some elected officials. An analysis of campaign finance data by MPN identified a large number of violations resulting from a new law, for which no action has been taken. In 2008 Missouri lawmakers revised the state's campaign finance law to remove caps on contributions. In exchange for the removal, lawmakers claimed to increase transparency of now limitless contributions by requiring ... Read Full Story

It's undeniable for the Nixon Administration, things aren't rosy in Missouri these days. And Nixon's approval rating shows that sentiment among Missouri voters. A new SurveyUSA poll shows Nixon's approval at 44 percent, a 6-point drop over the last month. Last week, we offered some criticism of another polling firm which generally offers less statistically valid results, but it seems that poll, which showed Nixon's approval at 42 percent, was not far off. What may be amiss in the new Surv... Read Full Story

Missouri legislators will begin pre-filing legislation for the 95th General Assembly next Tuesday. Pre-filing, which officially begins Dec. 1, offers legislators an opportunity to make their priorities known before the session begins, and perhaps even set the tone for the entire session. In 2009, of the 1,983 bills and resolutions filed in the state legislature, 367 (19%) were pre-filed. Of those, 141 (7% of the total) were pre-filed on Dec. 1. And pre-filed bills do turn out to be prett... Read Full Story

Your turkey may have a partisan flavor this year, because at least one poultry company is coming out with early investments for Missouri's 2010 election cycle. Arkansas-based Tyson Foods, one of Forbes' 100 largest corporations in the U.S., donated $5,800 to three candidates, including $5,000 to Gov. Jay Nixon (D), $300 to State Sen. Rob Mayer (R), and $500 to State Rep. Billy Pat Wright (R). Tyson also contributed to many of the same candidates in 2008, plus Attorney General Chris Koster... Read Full Story

Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) attended the Obama Administration's first official state dinner for the Prime Minister of India Tuesday night. McCaskill, an outspoken supporter of Obama during the 2008 campaign, was one of just a handful of Congressman invited to the event, according to the official White House invitation list. The Hill reported Tuesday afternoon on McCaskill's dilemma today about whether to become the first politician to Tweet during a state dinner. "Trying to figure... Read Full Story

Three Democrats and two Republicans are currently fundraising for primary contests in Missouri Senate District 24. This open Democratic-leaning seat is being vacated by term-limited Sen. Joan Bray (D). When Bray was first elected in 2002, she won by only a 5 point margin. Given what some analysts are calling a growing anti-Democratic mood in Missouri, this seat will be one to watch closely if the mood swings to heavily favor Republican candidates. Of the two Republicans in the contest, it'... Read Full Story

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch broke a story this morning about the arrest of State Rep. Don Calloway Jr. (D), from St. Louis County. Calloway, who is currently serving his first-term in the state House, apparently grabbed a checkbook from officials at a Northeast fire district board meeting Sunday. Calloway reportedly took the checkbook only to determine which bank payments would be coming from to fund severance payments to two fire district officials. Read the full Post-Dispatch coverage he... Read Full Story

A SurveyUSA poll released at the end of Oct. pegged Gov. Jay Nixon's (D) approval at 50 percent. That's 8 points higher than a recent Public Policy Polling survey, conducted just two weeks later. Both surveys a phone-based and neither provides a response rate, but that's where the similarities diverge. What then is the difference between these polls conducted just two weeks apart? For starters, SurveyUSA has a smaller sample size (n=600) and thus a larger margin of error than PPP (n=763)... Read Full Story

Three Democrats and two Republicans are currently fundraising for primary contests in Missouri Senate District 24. The seat, open in 2010, is being vacated by term-limited Sen. Joan Bray (D). When Bray was first elected in 2002, she won by only a 5 point margin. Given what some analysts are calling a growing anti-Democratic mood in Missouri, this seat will be one to watch closely. If fundraising is an adequate proxy in this senate district, former Lt. Gov. candidate Sam Page (D) is taking ... Read Full Story

Gov. Jay Nixon's approval rating sits at 42 percent, according to a recent poll conducted by Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling (PPP). Respondents who approve of Nixon include 36 percent of John McCain supporters in the 2008 election, 25 percent of self-described conservatives, and 23 percent of Republicans. "It's been a pretty successful first year for the state's new Governor," PPP analysts said. "42 percent of voters approve of the job he's doing to 25 percent disapproving. In a t... Read Full Story