Jefferson City, Mo. — Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft is pleased to announce the appointment of Jesus A. Osete as General Counsel. Osete will replace Frank Jung, who has held the position since January of 2017 when Ashcroft first was elected secretary of state. Jung is retiring from state government with 32 years of service on June 30.
Osete previously served as Deputy Solicitor General of Missouri and Deputy Attorney General for Special Litigation. He has presented oral argument in the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of Missouri.
Prior to joining the attorney general’s office, Osete was at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP in the Appellate and Supreme Court Group. Previous to private practice, Osete clerked for the Hon. Bobby E. Shepherd of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, and the Hon. Chief Justice Zel M. Fischer of the Supreme Court of Missouri.
Osete holds a J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis, where he served as senior executive editor of the Washington University Law Review, and an A.B. in political science and pre-law from the University of Arizona. Before law school, Osete worked for the late Senator John McCain in the United States Senate.
“We’re excited to have Jesus join our staff,” said Ashcroft. “He is a skilled lawyer with excellent experience in both state government and private practice. He will greatly benefit our office.”
Jung joined the Missouri Attorney General’s Office in 1989 following his graduation from the Michigan State University College of Law. After 14 years in the attorney general’s office, Jung served as the deputy general counsel at the Office of Administration. He was General Counsel for the Missouri Gaming Commission, Missouri State Auditor Tom Schweich and Missouri Office of Prosecution Services before joining Ashcroft’s staff. He is also an 11-year veteran of the United States Army.
“We are indebted to Frank for his service to our country and to the state of Missouri,” Ashcroft said. “Frank is invaluable and my office owes him thanks. He spent his career as a public servant, and for that we are grateful and wish him well in retirement.”
