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Candidates flock to Jeff. City to file

File photo

Candidates for the Missouri General Assembly, for Governor and for other statewide offices can now file to run.  Hundreds flocked to Jefferson City today and lined up outside the doors of the Secretary of State’s office to file their paperwork.

Among those filing on the first day was Republican Peter Kinder, who’s seeking a third term as Lt. Governor.  Kinder had originally planned to challenge Democratic incumbent Jay Nixon for Governor, but changed his mind last fall.

“I determined after Mr. Spence got in and was spending 10 million dollars of his own money to start, with more to follow, that an expensive primary would make it impossible for us to knock off a sitting incumbent governor," Kinder said.  "I decided to get back in this race, and I’m comfortable there.”

The filing period closes March 27th, barring the passage of any legislation to extend it.

Missouri Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a proud alumnus of the University of Mississippi (a.k.a., Ole Miss), and has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off the old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Mason, and their cat, Honey.