(D) JAY NIXON - Incumbent (53%)
JAY NIXON is serving his first term as governor of Missouri. Garnering the highest margin of victory for a

non-incumbent governor in 44 years, Nixon was overwhelmingly elected by Missourians as their 55th Governor on Nov. 4, 2008, to lead the state in a new direction.

Governor Nixon has put forward an agenda to make government more efficient, effective and responsive to the needs of Missouri families. He is committed to attracting the jobs of the future to Missouri, making health care more affordable and placing a college education within reach for middle-class students.

As he did while serving in the state Senate and during his four terms as attorney general, Governor Nixon is reaching across the aisle to put Missouri families first. During his first legislative session as Governor in 2009, Nixon successfully worked with the Republican-controlled legislature to pass his comprehensive jobs bill to put Missourians back to work in the face of a 25-year high in unemployment. The legislature also passed Caring for Missourians, an initiative by Gov. Nixon that will enable Missouri’s public colleges and universities to graduate an additional 900 professionals in high-demand health care fields each year. (Read More...)

(R) DAVID SPENCE (44%)

I am running for governor because I am concerned that career politicians and government bureaucrats are destroying jobs and opportunity. Government needs to get out of the way and off the backs of job creators, and that will lead to economic growth, more jobs, and more prosperity for all Missourians.

I plan to use my 27 years of experience creating jobs in the private sector to help Missouri get back on track. As a small business owner and CEO, I’ve learned how to lead, manage, and get things done. Missouri needs a new direction that recognizes government can’t solve and shouldn’t be expected to solve every problem.

Spence, 54, recently stepped down as the President of Alpha Packaging after nearly 27 years at the helm. Spence secured a loan to buy Alpha in 1985 at the age of 26. At the time, the business had about 15 employees and $350,000 in annual sales. A proven job creator, Spence led Alpha’s remarkable expansion to over 800 employees and almost $200 million in annual revenue. Spence has also served as the Chairman of Legacy Pharmaceutical Packaging, a Missouri-based company. While quality manufacturing jobs were being shipped overseas, Spence found the formula to break that trend and help provide a good living for hundreds of Missourians. Spence is not a career politician; he knows how to create an environment for Missouri job creators to thrive. Spence’s philosophy is that if we provide job creators certainty and get government out of the way, Missouri will recover quickly.