 Incumbent lieutenant governor Peter Kinder won the 2008 Missouri lieutenant gubernatorial election with 49.9% of the vote against Democratic candidate Sam Page.Kinder had been considered the front-runner in the 2012 Republican Gubernatorial primary, however after various controversies emerged, he decided to run for re-election.His decision was also influenced by St. Louis businessman and multimillionaire Dave Spence unexpectedly declaring to run for governor and pledging to put much of his own money into the race.