Katherine Pinner changes her mind again, drops out of St. Louis County Executive race

ST. LOUIS (KMOV) - Katherine Pinner has officially dropped out of the St. Louis County Executive race.

Last week, she informed members of the St. Louis County GOP that she intended to drop out, but days later, she wrote a blog post saying she changed her mind. On Friday, she officially filed a motion in St. Louis County Court to remove her name from the ballot.

Pinner was a political newcomer. She surprised political observers by upsetting State Rep. Shamed Dogan in the August primary.

In a blog post-Friday, Pinner explained her decision writing:

“I have pulled out of the race for Saint Louis County Executive. The reasons are as follow:

- The exempt status, though feasible for the Primary Election, presents difficulty moving into the General Election.

- Items related to traditional campaigning and financing do not correspond to my core values.

- Personal items.”

The St. Louis County Republican Party Steering Committee Chairwoman Rene Artman said she found out about Pinner’s exit Friday morning.

“2022 has been an unusual year so it goes for par, it fits right in,” Artman said.

Artman said that Pinner’s exit mirrored an already unconventional campaign.

“Her style of campaigning was unusual and people weren’t used to it they were having a little trouble with that,” Artman said.

Republicans are trying to unseat Democratic incumbent Dr. Sam Page. A spokesman for his campaign sent News 4 a statement reacting to the change:

“It’s too bad Ms. Pinner, who easily won her primary, found only road blocks and booby traps on the campaign trail. Apparently, Republican leaders are happier picking their candidate out of a hat than abiding by a primary election. “It will be quite a week as horses get traded and backs get stabbed. “We’ll leave a blank on the campaign mail and fill it in if they settle on a new candidate who actually stays in the race.” Campaign Spokesman, Richard Callow

Finding a new candidate won’t mean that voters have to go back to the polls, Artman explained how the St. Louis County Republican Party Steering Committee will pick another candidate.

“I will get nominees, they’re going to submit their resumes, and then it will go to the boards of the Central Committee, we will all vote on it, and we will pick a candidate,” Artman explained.

Artman says the Committee has until September 30 to pick a new candidate. When asked if there was anyone in mind, Artman said it was too soon since they just found out Pinner was dropping out.

Pinner didn’t talk to News 4 about her decision.

She’s also getting quieter online. On Friday afternoon her exit memo was the only post on her blog, Pinner turned off commenting and deleted all the other blogs. Her past posts included ones claiming Covid vaccines have microchips. That is something that has been widely debunked.

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