Christopher Samuel "Kit" Bond (March 6, 1939 – May 13, 2025) was an American attorney and politician from Missouri. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S.
Born~Died Mar 6, 1939 ~ May 13, 2025Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 3:38 PM
Christopher Samuel "Kit" Bond (March 6, 1939 – May 13, 2025) was an American attorney and politician from Missouri. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. senator from 1987 to 2011, following two non-consecutive terms as the governor of Missouri from 1973 to 1977 and 1981 to 1985, and two years as State Auditor of Missouri from 1971 to 1973. His first election as governor ended a 28-year Democratic streak in that office.
Elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, Bond defeated DemocratHarriett Woods by a margin of 53–47%. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004. On January 8, 2009, he announced that he would not seek re-election to a fifth term in 2010, and was succeeded by fellow Republican Roy Blunt on January 3, 2011.1 Following his retirement from the Senate, Bond became a partner at Thompson Coburn.2
Early life, education, and law career
A sixth-generation Missourian, Bond was born in St. Louis on March 6, 1939, the son of Elizabeth (née Green) and Arthur D. Bond.34 His father was captain of the 1924 Missouri Tigersfootball team and a . His maternal grandfather, A.P. Green, founded A.P. Green Industries, a manufacturer and a major employer for many years in Bond's hometown . He was the benefactor and namesake of at the .
This page is based on “Kit Bond” from English Wikipedia, (r1372296910) CC BY-SA 4.0 used under the license. The original authors are listed in its page history.
Bond moved back to his hometown of Mexico, Missouri in the fall of 1967, and ran for Congress in 1968 in Missouri's 9th congressional district, the rural northeastern part of the state. He defeated Anthony Schroeder in the August Republican primary, 56% to 44%, winning 19 of the district's 23 counties.13
In the November general election, Bond came close to defeating incumbent DemocraticU.S. CongressmanBill Hungate, 48% to 52%. Bond won eight of the district's 23 counties.14 Out of Hungate's five re-election campaigns, that 1968 election against Bond was his worst performance.15
State Attorney GeneralJohn Danforth hired Bond as an Assistant Attorney General in 1969, where Bond led the office's Consumer Protection Division. In 1970, at the age of 31, Bond was elected Missouri State Auditor, defeating seventeen-year incumbent Haskell Holman. As auditor, Bond hired seven certified public accountants to the office, which increased the total from one.16
Governor of Missouri
In 1972, Bond was elected governor of Missouri by a margin of 55% to 45%, making him, at 33 years of age, the youngest governor in the history of Missouri. Bond was the first Republican in 28 years to serve as governor of Missouri.17
Bond's residency qualifications to be governor were challenged but were upheld by the Missouri Supreme Court in 1972. Missouri law said the governor had to be a resident for 10 years. In the 10 years before his run, he had attended law school in Virginia, clerked for a federal appeals court judge in Atlanta, worked for a firm in Washington, D.C., applied to take the bar in Virginia and Georgia, registered a car in Washington, D.C., and applied for a marriage license in Kentucky. The Court sided with him, commenting that residence "is largely a matter of intention" and did not require "actual, physical presence". The court ruled a residence was "that place where a man has his true, fixed and permanent home and principal establishment, and to which whenever he is absent he has the intention of returning."18
In 1976, Bond faced Jackson County Prosecutor Joseph P. Teasdale. Bond appeared the heavy favorite, and at least one poll showed Bond ahead of Teasdale 51 percent to 36 percent.23 However, Teasdale attacked Bond over utility rates and launched an ad blitz attacking Bond, vastly outspending him in the last few weeks.24 Teasdale would defeat Bond by a little over 13,000 votes. Bond would later say of his loss: "I didn't answer his negative attacks and instead I tried to talk about the 50 good things we had accomplished. And the voters ... gave me four years to think about it."25 Afterwards, Bond returned to practicing law, setting up the Great Plains Legal Foundation, a group which fought agriculture regulations.25
In 1980, Bond made a successful comeback, defeating fellow Republican and incumbent Lieutenant Governor Bill Phelps in the primary, and Teasdale in November. His second term was plagued by budget issues, with the Missouri commissioner of administration Stephen Bradford telling Bond during the transition period: "Governor, I'm sorry to tell you this, but there's no money."26 Among Bond's most noted accomplishments was helping take the Parents As Teachers program statewide.2728 Bond served as the Chairman of the Midwestern Governors Association in 1983.29 In 1984, Bond chose not to seek re-election to a third term as Governor and was succeeded as governor on January 14, 1985, by John Ashcroft, a Republican who Bond had appointed to complete his unexpired term as State Auditor after he was elected governor. Ashcroft later served alongside Bond in the U.S. Senate.30
Facing the expiration of his fourth full term in January 2011, Bond announced on January 8, 2009, that he did not plan to seek a fifth term and would not run for re-election in November 2010.1 Representative Roy Blunt held the seat for the Republicans, defeating Democratic Secretary of State Robin Carnahan.35
Tenure
Environmental record
Bond expressed support for zero-carbon energy from nuclear power in a 2008 Senate floor speech.36
Taxes
Commenting on an IRS spokesman's claim that a person catching a record-breaking home run ball from Mark McGwire could be "responsible for paying any applicable tax on any large gift", which was thought to be close to $140,000 in this circumstance, Bond said: "If the IRS wants to know why they are the most hated federal agency in America, they need look no further than this."37
Torture
Bond opposed setting forth interrogation methods used by the Central Intelligence Agency to conform to the U.S. Army Field Manual.38 While drawing criticism for being one of only nine senators to oppose such a bill, Bond said on the floor that he does not favor or approve of torture.39
In a memo to CIA directorJohn Brennan and others, he suggested banning specific techniques that could be considered torture in order to encourage servicemen to invent others on their own.39 He did not approve of making interrogation techniques public information on the basis that it would allow enemy combatants to train and prepare themselves for what they might go through if captured. He drew criticism when, during a debate he made a comment comparing waterboarding to swimming, stating "There are different ways of doing it. It's like swimming, freestyle, backstroke", in response to the question "do you think that waterboarding... constitutes torture?"40
Free trade
Bond was a supporter of expanding free trade to the developing world, and he believed in giving presidential authority to fasttrack trade relations.41 He voted for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)42 and the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)43 and believed in permanently normalizing trade relations with the People's Republic of China and Vietnam.41
Government reform
While Bond voted in favor in banning members of Congress from receiving gifts from lobbyists,5 he generally opposed campaign reform. He voted against the McCain-Feingold Act for bipartisan campaign finance solutions.44 Bond also voted against limiting contributions from corporations or labor.45
On June 25, 1976, Bond officially ordered the recension of Executive Order Number 44 issued by Lilburn W. Boggs in 1838 that ordered the expulsion or extermination of all Mormons from the State of Missouri and issued an apology to Mormons on behalf of all Missourians.4748
In 1983, as Missouri governor, Bond signed a declaration of recognition in support of the group known as the Northern Cherokee, now called the Northern Cherokee Nation of the Old Louisiana Territory attempting to grant a form of State recognition by way of executive order. This act was part of the group's attempt to gain Federal Recognition and to receive the related benefits for the group.495051
Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy
In October 2008, Bond apologized to former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves, after a U.S. Justice Department report cited Bond for forcing Graves out over a disagreement with Representative Sam Graves. Following the report, Attorney General Michael Mukasey appointed a special prosecutor to investigate whether former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and other officials involved in the firings of nine U.S. attorneys broke the law. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a progressive activist group, filed an Ethics Committee complaint against Bond over his role in the ouster of Graves.52
In 2009, it was revealed according to White House documents that Graves was put on a dismissal list a month after White House e-mail indicated that his replacement was part of a deal between Bond and the Bush administration.53 The e-mail suggested that Graves was replaced with a candidate favored by Bond to clear the way for an appointment of a federal judge from Arkansas on the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.53
In August 2011, Bond announced that he would join alliantgroup's strategic advisory board and serve as a senior adviser for the firm.56
Bond formally launched his own firm, Kit Bond Strategies, in November 2011.57
Missouri Apollo 17 goodwill Moon rock
In the last few days of his long political career, Bond and his staff solved a mystery that had intrigued the press, Missouri politicians, and members of academia for much of 2010. Missouri state officials had wrongly believed that the state museum held a rare and valuable Apollo 17 lunar sample display containing a "goodwill Moon rock". On June 8, 2010, the state realized that what they actually had was only the Missouri Apollo 11 lunar sample display containing small samples of Moon dust rather than the $5 million piece of Apollo 17 history.5859 In cleaning out his senatorial office in December 2010, it was discovered that Bond had inadvertently taken the Apollo 17 display when he had left the governor's office. He subsequently returned the display to the governor of Missouri at the time, Jay Nixon, who passed it on to the Missouri State Museum. Bond was one of four former governors who had taken their states' lunar sample displays upon leaving office; the other three were the former governors of Colorado, West Virginia, and Arkansas.6061
Personal life
Bond's son Sam graduated in 2003 from Princeton University, after which he became an officer in the United States Marine Corps and served multiple tours of duty in Iraq.6263 Sam later entered a career in business.62
In 1994, Bond's wife, Carolyn, filed for a divorce, which was finalized the following year.5 Bond married Linda Pell, now Linda Bond, in 2002. She grew up in the Kansas City suburb of Gladstone and was a partner of a fundraising firm that supported Republican organizations. She and Bond had dated in the late 1990s, and then dated again a few years later before they were engaged. The marriage was her second marriage as well.64
After winning his second term as governor, Bond sued his investment manager and Paine Webber, alleging his $1.3 million trust fund had been drained. He was one of several clients who sued, and he settled in 1996 for $900,000.6566
In 2009, Bond co-authored a book with Lewis Simons entitled The Next Front: Southeast Asia and the Road to Global Peace with Islam.67
Bond had permanent vision loss in one eye, which he attributed to undiagnosed amblyopia during childhood.68
Bond died in St. Louis on May 13, 2025, at the age of 86.6970
After over 40 years in politics, Senator Bond announced on January 8, 2009, that he would not seek re-election in 2010.75 Results of elections in which he was a candidate are summarized as follows:
Carnahan, Jean (1998). If walls could talk: the story of Missouri's first families. Jefferson City, Mo: MMPI. p. 321. ISBN 978-0-9668992-0-7. Once on the job. Bond assembled a professional staff, adding seven certified public accountants to the auditor's office where there was previously only one. ↩
Carnahan, Jean (1998). If walls could talk: the story of Missouri's first families. Jefferson City, Mo: MMPI. p. 331. ISBN 978-0-9668992-0-7. To begin with, he antagonized Missouri's Republican leaders by endorsing Vice President Gerald Ford for the presidency against Ronald Reagan. ↩
A history of Missouri. 6: 1953 to 2003 / Lawrence H. Larsen. Columbia, Miss: Univ. of Miss. Pr. 2004. p. 136. ISBN 978-0-8262-1546-8. On his second try Teasdale easily won the Democratic nomination, which at the time appeared an empty honor. In September a poll of registered voters had Bond holding a 51 to 36 percent lead, with only 13 percent undecided. ↩
"Yucca Mountain Bill Introduced". U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Archived from the original on October 2, 2022. Retrieved November 18, 2023. ↩
Bond, Kit (January 15, 2009). "Let Congress Limit Permissible Interrogation Techniques". The Hill. Retrieved March 3, 2019. unworkable is the right way to describe proposals limiting interrogation techniques to those listed in the publicly available U.S. Army's Field Manual ↩
Gilbert, Joan (1996). The Trail of Tears across Missouri. Columbia: The Curators of the University of Missouri. p. 100. ISBN 0826210635. Retrieved November 17, 2009. ↩
Federalism and the State Recognition of Native American Tribes: A Survey of State-Recognized Tribes and State Recognition Processes Across the United States By Alexa Koenig and Jonathan Stein, pp. 60–64 ↩
Christopher Samuel "Kit" Bond (March 6, 1939 – May 13, 2025) was an American attorney and politician from Missouri. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. senator from 1987 to 2011, following two non-consecutive terms as the governor of Missouri from 1973 to 1977 and 1981 to 1985, and two years as State Auditor of Missouri from 1971 to 1973. His first election as governor ended a 28-year Democratic streak in that office.
Elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, Bond defeated DemocratHarriett Woods by a margin of 53–47%. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004. On January 8, 2009, he announced that he would not seek re-election to a fifth term in 2010, and was succeeded by fellow Republican Roy Blunt on January 3, 2011.1 Following his retirement from the Senate, Bond became a partner at Thompson Coburn.2
Early life, education, and law career
A sixth-generation Missourian, Bond was born in St. Louis on March 6, 1939, the son of Elizabeth (née Green) and Arthur D. Bond.3 His father was captain of the 1924 team and a . His maternal grandfather, A.P. Green, founded A.P. Green Industries, a manufacturer and a major employer for many years in Bond's hometown . He was the benefactor and namesake of at the .
Bond moved back to his hometown of Mexico, Missouri in the fall of 1967, and ran for Congress in 1968 in Missouri's 9th congressional district, the rural northeastern part of the state. He defeated Anthony Schroeder in the August Republican primary, 56% to 44%, winning 19 of the district's 23 counties.13
In the November general election, Bond came close to defeating incumbent DemocraticU.S. CongressmanBill Hungate, 48% to 52%. Bond won eight of the district's 23 counties.14 Out of Hungate's five re-election campaigns, that 1968 election against Bond was his worst performance.15
State Attorney GeneralJohn Danforth hired Bond as an Assistant Attorney General in 1969, where Bond led the office's Consumer Protection Division. In 1970, at the age of 31, Bond was elected Missouri State Auditor, defeating seventeen-year incumbent Haskell Holman. As auditor, Bond hired seven certified public accountants to the office, which increased the total from one.16
Governor of Missouri
In 1972, Bond was elected governor of Missouri by a margin of 55% to 45%, making him, at 33 years of age, the youngest governor in the history of Missouri. Bond was the first Republican in 28 years to serve as governor of Missouri.17
Bond's residency qualifications to be governor were challenged but were upheld by the Missouri Supreme Court in 1972. Missouri law said the governor had to be a resident for 10 years. In the 10 years before his run, he had attended law school in Virginia, clerked for a federal appeals court judge in Atlanta, worked for a firm in Washington, D.C., applied to take the bar in Virginia and Georgia, registered a car in Washington, D.C., and applied for a marriage license in Kentucky. The Court sided with him, commenting that residence "is largely a matter of intention" and did not require "actual, physical presence". The court ruled a residence was "that place where a man has his true, fixed and permanent home and principal establishment, and to which whenever he is absent he has the intention of returning."18
In 1976, Bond faced Jackson County Prosecutor Joseph P. Teasdale. Bond appeared the heavy favorite, and at least one poll showed Bond ahead of Teasdale 51 percent to 36 percent.23 However, Teasdale attacked Bond over utility rates and launched an ad blitz attacking Bond, vastly outspending him in the last few weeks.24 Teasdale would defeat Bond by a little over 13,000 votes. Bond would later say of his loss: "I didn't answer his negative attacks and instead I tried to talk about the 50 good things we had accomplished. And the voters ... gave me four years to think about it."25 Afterwards, Bond returned to practicing law, setting up the Great Plains Legal Foundation, a group which fought agriculture regulations.25
In 1980, Bond made a successful comeback, defeating fellow Republican and incumbent Lieutenant Governor Bill Phelps in the primary, and Teasdale in November. His second term was plagued by budget issues, with the Missouri commissioner of administration Stephen Bradford telling Bond during the transition period: "Governor, I'm sorry to tell you this, but there's no money."26 Among Bond's most noted accomplishments was helping take the Parents As Teachers program statewide.2728 Bond served as the Chairman of the Midwestern Governors Association in 1983.29 In 1984, Bond chose not to seek re-election to a third term as Governor and was succeeded as governor on January 14, 1985, by John Ashcroft, a Republican who Bond had appointed to complete his unexpired term as State Auditor after he was elected governor. Ashcroft later served alongside Bond in the U.S. Senate.30
Facing the expiration of his fourth full term in January 2011, Bond announced on January 8, 2009, that he did not plan to seek a fifth term and would not run for re-election in November 2010.1 Representative Roy Blunt held the seat for the Republicans, defeating Democratic Secretary of State Robin Carnahan.35
Tenure
Environmental record
Bond expressed support for zero-carbon energy from nuclear power in a 2008 Senate floor speech.36
Taxes
Commenting on an IRS spokesman's claim that a person catching a record-breaking home run ball from Mark McGwire could be "responsible for paying any applicable tax on any large gift", which was thought to be close to $140,000 in this circumstance, Bond said: "If the IRS wants to know why they are the most hated federal agency in America, they need look no further than this."37
Torture
Bond opposed setting forth interrogation methods used by the Central Intelligence Agency to conform to the U.S. Army Field Manual.38 While drawing criticism for being one of only nine senators to oppose such a bill, Bond said on the floor that he does not favor or approve of torture.39
In a memo to CIA directorJohn Brennan and others, he suggested banning specific techniques that could be considered torture in order to encourage servicemen to invent others on their own.39 He did not approve of making interrogation techniques public information on the basis that it would allow enemy combatants to train and prepare themselves for what they might go through if captured. He drew criticism when, during a debate he made a comment comparing waterboarding to swimming, stating "There are different ways of doing it. It's like swimming, freestyle, backstroke", in response to the question "do you think that waterboarding... constitutes torture?"40
Free trade
Bond was a supporter of expanding free trade to the developing world, and he believed in giving presidential authority to fasttrack trade relations.41 He voted for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)42 and the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)43 and believed in permanently normalizing trade relations with the People's Republic of China and Vietnam.41
Government reform
While Bond voted in favor in banning members of Congress from receiving gifts from lobbyists,5 he generally opposed campaign reform. He voted against the McCain-Feingold Act for bipartisan campaign finance solutions.44 Bond also voted against limiting contributions from corporations or labor.45
On June 25, 1976, Bond officially ordered the recension of Executive Order Number 44 issued by Lilburn W. Boggs in 1838 that ordered the expulsion or extermination of all Mormons from the State of Missouri and issued an apology to Mormons on behalf of all Missourians.4748
In 1983, as Missouri governor, Bond signed a declaration of recognition in support of the group known as the Northern Cherokee, now called the Northern Cherokee Nation of the Old Louisiana Territory attempting to grant a form of State recognition by way of executive order. This act was part of the group's attempt to gain Federal Recognition and to receive the related benefits for the group.495051
Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy
In October 2008, Bond apologized to former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves, after a U.S. Justice Department report cited Bond for forcing Graves out over a disagreement with Representative Sam Graves. Following the report, Attorney General Michael Mukasey appointed a special prosecutor to investigate whether former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and other officials involved in the firings of nine U.S. attorneys broke the law. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a progressive activist group, filed an Ethics Committee complaint against Bond over his role in the ouster of Graves.52
In 2009, it was revealed according to White House documents that Graves was put on a dismissal list a month after White House e-mail indicated that his replacement was part of a deal between Bond and the Bush administration.53 The e-mail suggested that Graves was replaced with a candidate favored by Bond to clear the way for an appointment of a federal judge from Arkansas on the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.53
In August 2011, Bond announced that he would join alliantgroup's strategic advisory board and serve as a senior adviser for the firm.56
Bond formally launched his own firm, Kit Bond Strategies, in November 2011.57
Missouri Apollo 17 goodwill Moon rock
In the last few days of his long political career, Bond and his staff solved a mystery that had intrigued the press, Missouri politicians, and members of academia for much of 2010. Missouri state officials had wrongly believed that the state museum held a rare and valuable Apollo 17 lunar sample display containing a "goodwill Moon rock". On June 8, 2010, the state realized that what they actually had was only the Missouri Apollo 11 lunar sample display containing small samples of Moon dust rather than the $5 million piece of Apollo 17 history.5859 In cleaning out his senatorial office in December 2010, it was discovered that Bond had inadvertently taken the Apollo 17 display when he had left the governor's office. He subsequently returned the display to the governor of Missouri at the time, Jay Nixon, who passed it on to the Missouri State Museum. Bond was one of four former governors who had taken their states' lunar sample displays upon leaving office; the other three were the former governors of Colorado, West Virginia, and Arkansas.6061
Personal life
Bond's son Sam graduated in 2003 from Princeton University, after which he became an officer in the United States Marine Corps and served multiple tours of duty in Iraq.6263 Sam later entered a career in business.62
In 1994, Bond's wife, Carolyn, filed for a divorce, which was finalized the following year.5 Bond married Linda Pell, now Linda Bond, in 2002. She grew up in the Kansas City suburb of Gladstone and was a partner of a fundraising firm that supported Republican organizations. She and Bond had dated in the late 1990s, and then dated again a few years later before they were engaged. The marriage was her second marriage as well.64
After winning his second term as governor, Bond sued his investment manager and Paine Webber, alleging his $1.3 million trust fund had been drained. He was one of several clients who sued, and he settled in 1996 for $900,000.6566
In 2009, Bond co-authored a book with Lewis Simons entitled The Next Front: Southeast Asia and the Road to Global Peace with Islam.67
Bond had permanent vision loss in one eye, which he attributed to undiagnosed amblyopia during childhood.68
Bond died in St. Louis on May 13, 2025, at the age of 86.6970
After over 40 years in politics, Senator Bond announced on January 8, 2009, that he would not seek re-election in 2010.75 Results of elections in which he was a candidate are summarized as follows:
Carnahan, Jean (1998). If walls could talk: the story of Missouri's first families. Jefferson City, Mo: MMPI. p. 321. ISBN 978-0-9668992-0-7. Once on the job. Bond assembled a professional staff, adding seven certified public accountants to the auditor's office where there was previously only one. ↩
Carnahan, Jean (1998). If walls could talk: the story of Missouri's first families. Jefferson City, Mo: MMPI. p. 331. ISBN 978-0-9668992-0-7. To begin with, he antagonized Missouri's Republican leaders by endorsing Vice President Gerald Ford for the presidency against Ronald Reagan. ↩
A history of Missouri. 6: 1953 to 2003 / Lawrence H. Larsen. Columbia, Miss: Univ. of Miss. Pr. 2004. p. 136. ISBN 978-0-8262-1546-8. On his second try Teasdale easily won the Democratic nomination, which at the time appeared an empty honor. In September a poll of registered voters had Bond holding a 51 to 36 percent lead, with only 13 percent undecided. ↩
"Yucca Mountain Bill Introduced". U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Archived from the original on October 2, 2022. Retrieved November 18, 2023. ↩
Bond, Kit (January 15, 2009). "Let Congress Limit Permissible Interrogation Techniques". The Hill. Retrieved March 3, 2019. unworkable is the right way to describe proposals limiting interrogation techniques to those listed in the publicly available U.S. Army's Field Manual ↩
Gilbert, Joan (1996). The Trail of Tears across Missouri. Columbia: The Curators of the University of Missouri. p. 100. ISBN 0826210635. Retrieved November 17, 2009. ↩
Federalism and the State Recognition of Native American Tribes: A Survey of State-Recognized Tribes and State Recognition Processes Across the United States By Alexa Koenig and Jonathan Stein, pp. 60–64 ↩