Between the “king of voter suppression” Kris Kobach running for governor and Gov. Brownback’s disastrous tax cuts that have decimated Kansas, there’s been a lot of national attention on Kansan politics this year. Here’s the 411 on Kansas’ primary.
Kansas has its statewide primary election on Tuesday, August 7. If you’re a voter in Kansas, all the resources you need to vote are listed here; if you’re not in the state, consider sharing this post with friends or on social media to increase awareness and turnout!
Kansas Voter Resources
Registration deadline: July 17
Confirm your voter registration: https://iwillvote.com/
Info for overseas/military voters here
Find your polling place here
Check ID requirements here
Early/Advance voting info here
Kansas Politics: A Snapshot
• No Senators are up for re-election in 2018
• All 4 House Representatives are up for re-election
• Voted +20 for Trump in 2016
• Current partisan breakdown of the state legislature:
>>> Governor (R)
>>> State Senate 30 (R) – 9 (D) — 1 (I)
>>> State House 85 (R) – 40 (D)
Key Races
GOVERNOR
Governor Sam Brownback was the architect of the disastrous Kansas tax cuts. He recently left Kansas to work for the Trump administration. The Democrats have a large field of candidates running in the primary; Kelly and Svaty appear to be the frontrunners. The Democratic candidates are:
Arden Andersen – website
Jack Bergeson – website
Carl Brewer – website
Laura Kelly – website
Joshua Svaty – website
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, DISTRICT 2 & 3
Cook Political Report has Districts 2 and 3 rated competitive, and are good opportunities for the Democrats to flip.
District 2 candidate – No incumbent running
Paul Davis – website
District 3 candidates – Short summaries of each candidate here
Sharice Davids – website
Mike McCamon – website
Tom Niermann – website
Jay Sidie – website
Brent Welder – website
Sylvia Williams – website
SECRETARY OF STATE
The current and outgoing Secretary of State is Kris Kobach, who recently co-chaired Trump’s doomed voter fraud commission with VP Mike Pence before they were sued and disbanded. Kobach was sued multiple times by the ACLU for his voter suppression policies in Kansas, and lost all of the cases. It’s high time Kansas had a Democrat in the office looking out for their voting rights.
Brian McClendon – website
STATE HOUSE
All 125 seats in the House are up for re-election this year. The Democrats need to flip one seat to break the Republican supermajority (and prevent a constitutional amendment from getting passed). A list of the candidates running for the House can be found here.
NOTE: If you’re unsure which state district you’re in, type in your address at Open States to get that info.
A Final Note
For a more complete list of state races in the primary, visit Ballotpedia: Kansas Elections 2018. You can enter your address at 411Vote to see a sample ballot. To learn about events featuring candidates running for office, connect with your local chapter of the Kansas Democrats.
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Categories: Elections
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