Three weeks away from Election Day, Congressman Kenny Hulshof remains optimistic in his contest with Attorney General Jay Nixon for the governor’s office.

“We’re closing the gap here,” Mr. Hulshof, a Columbia Republican, told the News-Press Editorial Board Tuesday.

Mr. Hulshof admitted that surviving a close Republican primary with Treasurer Sarah Steelman this August meant he walked away with an image that affected the campaign. Ms. Steelman, who nabbed 45 percent of the vote statewide including victories in Buchanan County and 12 area counties, had criticized him for backing federal earmarks.

“Sometimes family feuds are the most difficult,” Mr. Hulshof said.

As a result, he said, he was able to roll out a more progressive platform without “the battle scars of Jefferson City,” which he dubbed almost as partisan as Washington.

He then pointed to his ultimate opponent, who served as a state senator for six years before starting his 16-year tenure as the attorney general.

“To be the longest serving individual in state government, as is the attorney general, 22 years, to suddenly become an agent of change ... when in fact you’ve been part of the status quo,” he said.

The crux of Mr. Nixon’s campaign has been to restore health care to Missourians who lost Medicaid eligibility in 2005. Mr. Hulshof said, “The quality of care that was offered in the old Medicaid system was not good ... Ultimately there was a population that no longer qualifies.”

He plugged his own health care plan to cover an additional 701,000 Missourians in an insurance pool made up of small businesses and people who just exceed Medicaid requirements to obtain private insurance. He said the state health plans would cost less than $50 million in general revenue. He said his opponent’s plan that would hit “the reset button on Medicaid” would cost $265 million in general revenue, a figure Mr. Nixon last week contended was bloated.

Mr. Hulshof talked up his intentions to work for changes to Missouri’s Nonpartisan Court Plan. He criticized trial attorneys’ influence on the judicial selection process.

“The Kansas City Royals don’t get to choose the umpires, so why do we let the lawyers (choose) the judges,” he said.

He wants to give the governor veto authority of the nominees, which now includes three names, and increase the panel to five nominees.

He plans on Thursday to announce another proposal to train employees on the state dime in exchange for employers bringing jobs to the state.

“We have to be aggressive on growing this economy,” he said.

Alyson E. Raletz can be reached

at alysonraletz@npgco.com.