For awhile Tuesday night, as the state's election returns were being released by Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft's office, Republican Saundra McDowell held the lead in the state auditor's race.
However, when the final votes were reported early Wednesday, incumbent Nicole Galloway, D-Columbia, was the winner of her first, four-year term in office, with 1,197,020 votes, or 50.367 percent of the total 2,376,603 votes cast statewide.
McDowell, R-Jefferson City, placed second, with 1,060,066 votes, or 44.604 percent of the total.
Libertarian Sean O'Toole, of Kansas City, received 51,468 votes, or 2.166 percent of the total.
Don Fitz, of St. Louis, the Green Party's candidate, won 18,388 votes, or 0.774 percent.
And Jacob Luetkemeyer, of California, Mo., the Constitution Party's candidate, received 48,384 votes, or 2.036 percent.
Ashcroft reported 1,277 write-in votes, or 0.054 percent of the total.
Final certification of the election totals is scheduled for Nov. 30.