Missouri Gov. Parson appoints top counsel Andrew Bailey as state’s next attorney general

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday appointed Andrew Bailey, one of his top advisors, as the state’s next attorney general to succeed Senator-elect Eric Schmitt.

Bailey, who has served as Parson’s general counsel since last year, was widely considered the likely choice for the job. Parson had interviewed four other potential candidates prior to Wednesday’s announcement, multiple sources told The Star.

Parson, during a news conference in Jefferson City Wednesday, said his choice of Bailey was an easy one. He said he picked Bailey to bring stability to the office.

“When considering the next AG, I looked for five core things — commitment to law and order, patriotism and respect for the Constitution, conservative values, family values, and someone who would promote calm and steady while never afraid to fight for Missourians,” he said.

Bailey, 41, on Wednesday vowed to push back against federal overreach.

“I’m going to bring my leadership, my legal experience, my fighting spirit and all of the intellectual firepower I have to bear on this mission,” he said. “I will deliver victories for the people of this state.”

Bailey, of Rhineland, will be sworn into the office in early January when Schmitt officially resigns from the role to take his seat in the U.S. Senate.

Bailey has never held an elected office. He started working as Parson’s deputy general counsel in 2019 before Parson hired him to the top position last year.

The attorney general position is widely viewed as the second most powerful state-level position in Missouri and has often been used as a political launching pad for higher office. Schmitt, during his tenure as attorney general, largely built his reputation through a barrage of legal challenges.

He unsuccessfully tried to sue China for the COVID-19 pandemic. He filed lawsuits against 47 school districts for enacting mask mandates. And he filed legal actions against the federal government and the Biden administration over a host of policies, from vaccine mandates to immigration.

Shortly after Bailey’s appointment, Missouri House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, a Springfield Democrat, criticized Schmitt and called on Bailey to immediately dismiss Schmitt’s lawsuits.

“Upon taking over in January, Attorney General-designee Andrew Bailey must immediately move to dismiss every one of Schmitt’s frivolous lawsuits that hasn’t already been laughed out of court,” Quade said in a statement. “This is an essential step to restoring the integrity of the office and demonstrating that, for the first time in years, Missouri has an attorney general who will put the legal interests of all Missourians ahead of the political ambitions of one.”

Asked Wednesday whether he would continue to pursue Schmitt’s ongoing lawsuits, Bailey broadly said he would review the state’s pending cases but he touted the work of his predecessors, Schmitt and Sen. Josh Hawley.

“There is a legacy of excellence that both General Hawley and General Schmitt are leaving behind that I intend to continue and carry on,” he said. “We’re always going to look for ways to get better. But what I do know is that when Missourians who value liberty want someone to stand in the gap against federal overreach, I’m going to be the attorney general who does precisely that.”

Bailey’s appointment means that he will likely have to begin campaigning for the 2024 election after being sworn in. His lack of political experience contrasts with Schmitt, who was an elected state senator and treasurer before Parson appointed him as attorney general.

Bailey said on Wednesday he plans to run for a full term as attorney general in 2024 and is prepared for a primary challenger.

“I’m prepared for anything that comes my way,” he said. “I’ve never backed down from a fight. I’m battle tested and I’m ready for this.”

Parson said he would do everything he could to make sure Bailey has the full resources of the state of Missouri. He said one of the things he considered when picking the next attorney general was whether they would stay in the position for a number of years.

Parson’s decision to appoint one of closest advisors raises concerns about whether Bailey will be independent from the governor’s office as attorney general, said Chuck Hatfield, a Jefferson City-based attorney who was Democrat Jay Nixon’s chief of staff when he was attorney general. Hatfield also successfully litigated the case that allowed Medicaid expansion to take effect in Missouri.

“One of the benefits to having a separately elected attorney general is that there’s a natural tension between what the governor wants to do and what the attorney general wants to do at times, and I think that’s healthy,” he said. “I don’t think we want an attorney general who is closely aligned with the governor’s office. An attorney general needs to be able to stand up to the governor, needs to be able to call out improper activity on the part of the governor and having a situation where the governor appoints your attorney general makes it more difficult.”

Hatfield said he was struck by how often Bailey deflected questions during Wednesday’s press conference. He said Bailey did not elaborate on what he plans to do as the state’s next attorney general.

“We didn’t really hear a lot about what his plans are for the office and I hope we’re going to hear more about that soon,” he said.

James Harris, a Jefferson City-based GOP strategist, said the amount of turnover in the attorney general’s office — Bailey will be the state’s fourth since 2017 — has been unusual. He said Parson likely picked Bailey to promote stability in the office and because he trusted him as his general counsel.

“Andrew Bailey is a great person — I’ve gotten to know him over the last couple of years while he’s worked for Gov. Parson,” he said. “He’s always been professional, very astute on legal issues, constitutional and statutory issues and a hard worker. I think he’ll be a great attorney general for Missouri.”

Bailey is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Law, where he was taught by both Hawley and the senator’s wife, Erin Morrow Hawley.

He took a statutory construction class taught by Hawley from 2011 to 2013, Parson spokesperson Kelli Jones confirmed to The Star. He also took an agricultural law class taught by Morrow Hawley.

Before working in the governor’s office, Bailey was the general counsel for the Missouri Department of Corrections. An Army veteran, Bailey also worked as assistant prosecuting attorney in Warren County and as an assistant attorney general under former Democratic Attorney General Chris Koster.

While working as Parson’s general counsel, records revealed that Bailey helped draft talking points that Parson used to argue that St. Louis Post-Dispatch journalist Josh Renaud should be prosecuted for uncovering a security flaw on the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website.

Parson’s effort to prosecute the journalist was roundly criticized by free press advocates and the Cole County prosecutor declined to pursue charges against the journalist in February.

Asked Wednesday whether he stood by the administration’s attack on the journalist, Bailey was noncommittal and said “the issue has been resolved and put to bed.” He went on to cite the state law that Parson’s office used to try to get the journalist prosecuted.

“I would discourage anyone from violating that statute,” he said.

The attorney general position serves as Missouri’s top lawyer, bringing and defending lawsuits on behalf of the state. It also provides legal advice to most state agencies and enforces the state’s civil laws.

But the office has also been a political stepping stone in Missouri and helped launch several successful political careers.

Schmitt was elected to the U.S. Senate just four years after Parson appointed him as attorney general. Hawley, his immediate predecessor, began his successful Senate campaign less than a year after being sworn into the office.

And before them, attorneys general John Danforth, John Ashcroft and Jay Nixon all used the office as a pathway to higher office.