Republican Ed Martin switches races to run for Attorney General
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Republican Ed Martin switches races to run for Attorney General

Date: January 26, 2012
By: Paige Hornor
State Capitol Bureau

JEFFERSON CITY - St. Louis Attorney Ed Martin dropped his Congressional bid to run for Attorney General Thursday morning.

Former Gov. Matt Blunt's Chief of Staff will challenge Democrat Chris Koster for the position. This leaves Republicans Ann Wagner and Randy Jotte in the race for second Congressional district.

Martin asked voters to support him in his plans to refocus Missouri's needs. Martin said if he is elected, he will address many of the states problems including drug epidemic, illegal immigration, voter fraud and no call lists. He said his campaign also focuses on moving away from the federal health care law and federal government growth.

"We have to have an Attorney General's office that is not focused on politics and is focused more on the simple fact that we have laws - we have a constitution - and we have to abide by them," Martin said.

Republicans are already lining up behind Martin, the only major Republican in the race.

"At a time when the federal government is out-of-control, Chris Koster refuses to aggressively stand up for Missourians. Ed will fight against job-killing federal mandates such as Obamacare, and he will vigorously defend laws passed by the Missouri General Assembly," said David Cole, Chairman of the Missouri Republican Party.

This is Martin's fourth announced candidacy over the past two years. He previously ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate, before switching to Congress. Martin said he is not concerned about leaving the race for Congress.

"I am very confident that there are good people running for office all across Missouri and I think they will do great," Martin said.

Martin left the Blunt administration after controversy. Staff Attorney Scott Eckersley was fired in 2008 after telling administration they were violating the open records law.

Democrats focused on Martin switching contests.

"We welcome Ed to the race for however long he decides to stay," said Missouri Democratic Party spokesperson Caitlin Legacki.

Martin challenged Koster and promised to focus on the state's Constitution.

"The Missouri Constitution is very strong. It's got an incredible bill of rights and a declaration of duty and we really need to make sure we live up to that. That's what the Attorney General should do," Martin said.

Chris Koster, a former Republican is in his first term as Attorney General. He defeated Republican Mike Gibbons in the 2008 election.