JEFFERSON CITY — A Kirkwood Democrat who held cabinet-level positions in state government in the 1990s and early 2000s is poised to run for Missouri auditor in the 2026 election.
Quentin Wilson, 70, said he plans to make a formal announcement within the next two months after filing paperwork last week to form a campaign committee for the bid.
The post currently is held by Republican Scott Fitzpatrick, 38, who is in his first term in a job he describes as a watchdog for taxpayers. Other than statewide ballot initiatives on hot-button issues like abortion and making it harder for citizens to change the state constitution, the auditor post is the lone statewide office on the ballot next year.
All statewide offices currently are held by Republicans.
Wilson could face a challenge in the August 2026 Democratic primary from Greg Upchurch, a St. Charles resident who has made three previous unsuccessful runs for office, including two for the state legislature and a 2020 bid for lieutenant governor. Upchurch formed a campaign committee for state auditor in September, but has not filed any campaign finance reports.
As auditor, Wilson said he wants to serve as a performance consultant to the agencies that comprise state government.
“I’m looking at where we are now and how can we do better,” Wilson said.
Wilson served as commissioner of the Missouri Board of Higher Education beginning in 2002, helping steer the state’s public four-year college and university campuses and community colleges, as well as independent institutions and proprietary schools.
He spent a year as cabinet director for Democratic Gov. Bob Holden in 2001, after serving as director of the Missouri Department of Revenue under Democratic Gov. Mel Carnahan from 1998 to 2001.
He also served as a deputy director at the Missouri Department of Economic Development.
Wilson spent one year as director of revenue for St. Louis County beginning in July 2019.
Wilson said he has been active in the No Labels organization, founded in 2009 by former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, a one-time Democrat from Connecticut who ended his political career as an independent.
“I just feel like we have so many challenges that aren’t being met in the current environment. I think it’s important to have an independent voice in Jefferson City,” Wilson said, adding that many of the current auditor employees are non-partisan career employees.
Fitzpatrick was sworn in as Missouri’s 39th state auditor in January 2023. He served as state treasurer from 2019 until 2023 and was a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from 2013-2019, where he was chairman of the powerful House Budget Committee.
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Kurt Erickson | Post-Dispatch
Jefferson City reporter
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