Former January 6 Counsel John Wood Makes Ballot as Independent in Missouri Senate Race

Former senior counsel to the January 6 Select Committee, Attorney John Wood, has collected enough signatures to ensure he will be on the ballot in the Missouri general election race for U.S Senate as an independent candidate.

Wood, who was tapped to join the committee by Vice Chair Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) and Chair Benny Thompson (R-MS), collected upwards of 20,000 signatures which he turned in Monday, Jack Suntrup and Kurt Erickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch noted. He secured more than double the 10,000 needed to make the ballot.

In a video Suntrup shared on Twitter Monday, a reporter asked if the way he runs his campaign hinges on who his general election opponents are.

Wood responded:

No it really doesn’t. Obviously as a candidate, I’m really eager to see who I’m going to be running against, but it doesn’t change anything about what we’re going to do. The message is still the same, which is that Missouri voters want an alternative to the extremes and the divisiveness that they’re getting from candidates in both major parties.

Wood, who previously told the Post-Dispatch he is a “lifelong Republican,” announced his candidacy as an independent in late June after leaving the January 6 Committee. He has aligned himself with establishment Republicans, previously telling the publication that he supports GOP Senate Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and hopes he reciprocates support in the race. Moreover, he spoke glowingly of the gun-control bill recently signed into law by President Joe Biden, which was championed in the Senate by Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX).

His support of McConnell is a clear distinction between himself and some of the candidates running in the GOP primary, which takes place Tuesday. Former Gov. Eric Greitens (R-MO), who Wood has taken aim at, set the tone for the race last year, declaring he would vote McConnell out of leadership.

What is more, Wood recently told KCTV he plans to work with leftists in the U.S. Senate should he be elected.

“I consider myself as conservative, but a common-sense conservative,” he said. “I’m looking to go to Washington to get things done and reach out across the aisle and see if there are areas of compromise where I can be part of the governing coalition.”

The outlet noted that he is backed by the Super PAC Missouri Stands United, which is headed by former Sen. Jack Danforth (R-MO), who served from 1977-1995. The PAC has already shelled out in excess of $3 million to benefit Wood, according to Open Secrets. 

Wood previously said he does not want to be a spoiler but acknowledged to KCTV that he expects to siphon off votes from candidates in the two major parties and noted he will be hurting one and helping another.

“So, I’m probably going to draw from both candidates,” he said. “I don’t know which one I’ll hurt or help more than the other, but I’m in this to win it.”