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JEFFERSON CITY — A state senator berated Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft on Friday at a Republican event in a video that was circulated widely over the weekend.

In the clip, which lasted less than a minute, state Sen. Denny Hoskins, a Warrensburg Republican who is seeking Ashcroft’s job as secretary of state, called Ashcroft “chicken (expletive)� six times and also a “(expletive) coward.�

Ashcroft remained calm throughout the interaction.

Hoskins, in a subsequent social media post, said Ashcroft had “barked off� and pointed his finger in his wife Michelle’s face after Ashcroft finished his speech at the Perry County Lincoln Days.

At the beginning of the video, Hoskins asked, “You have something to say to me?� Ashcroft responded, “I just said, ‘The truth hurts.’�

“Yeah, to my wife,� Hoskins said. Ashcroft is heard saying, “She was looking at me,� and that, “I just responded to her.�

Hoskins said, “Whatever ... she was looking at you when you walked by? You’re a chicken (expletive).�

“If you got something to say, be man enough to say it to me,� Hoskins said.

Ashcroft then said he had told Hoskins the secretary of state “doesn’t control� libraries in an aside that isn’t elaborated on in the video.

“I will always honor and defend my wife, and I won’t tolerate another man putting his finger in my wife’s face and barking off to her,� Hoskins said afterward on social media.

He said state Rep. Adam Schwadron, a St. Charles Republican who is also running for secretary of state, recorded the encounter on his cellphone. Schwadron on Monday provided a copy of the recording to the Post-Dispatch.

Ashcroft’s campaign on Monday denied the secretary of state “barked off� and pointed at Hoskins’ wife.

Jason Cabel Roe, a spokesman for Ashcroft’s campaign, said Monday “none of that� happened and that Hoskins “just flew off the handle for no reason.�

“Campaigns can get stressful and Jay understands, and he’s willing to say bygones are bygones,� Roe said in a text message.

The confrontation came a day after the Ashcroft campaign celebrated a “major endorsement� of his campaign by the Ethical Society of Police, an organization representing Black St. Louis police officers.

Democrats basked in the conflict.

“Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft should apologize to Mrs. Hoskins,� Missouri Senate Democrats said on X, formerly known as Twitter, while sharing the video.

Ashcroft, whose widely known last name has been viewed as an asset in his bid for governor, has led in public polling so far and is fending off Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe and state Sen. Bill Eigel in the race for the Republican nomination. Eigel is allied with Hoskins, a fellow member of the Missouri Freedom Caucus in the state Senate.

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade and businessman Mike Hamra are among Democrats seeking their party’s nomination.

Hoskins, meanwhile, faces a defamation lawsuit in federal court in Kansas connected to false information he shared online that claimed a man detained by police was the Kansas City Super Bowl parade shooter and an “illegal� immigrant.

He is one of eight Republican contenders in the secretary of state’s race.

Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher, who has been under ethics investigation since last year, is one of the candidates and has raised the most money.

Other GOP candidates include state Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, who is trying to make constitutional amendments harder to enact; Jamie Corley, who tried to overturn Missouri’s near-total abortion ban through a constitutional amendment; Valentina Gomez, who gained attention for burning books; Schwadron, who has called on Plocher to resign as speaker; Wentzville Municipal Judge Mike Carter and Greene County Clerk Shane Schoeller.

Democrats running for secretary of state include state Rep. Barbara Phifer of Kirkwood, and Monique Williams and Haley Jacobson of St. Louis.