Sen. Lynn Jenkins’ theme in her campaign for state treasurer is so simple that it’s boiled down to three letters, placed on each of her signs “CPA.”

Dennis Wilson’s pitch in running for the Republican nomination against her is that the treasurer doesn’t need to be a CPA. Instead, he says, voters should go for his mix of business and political experience, which includes work in the State Treasurer’s Office and nine months as Johnson County treasurer.

The Wilson-Jenkins race is among a pair of less visible primary races to be decided Tuesday. The other is a three-way contest for the Republican nomination for insurance commissioner.

The treasurer’s race often receives little attention, in part because the office’s role in state government has been limited. The office is being vacated because Tim Shallenburger is running for governor.

Treasurers have pursued initiatives, such as finding unclaimed property, encouraging agricultural loans or giving cities and counties investment opportunities. But treasurers typically haven’t played much of a role in the most important policy and budget debates.

That leaves candidates to talk about themselves.

Jenkins, from Topeka, and Wilson, from Overland Park, are vying for the right to face Democrat Sally Finney of Olathe, a public health lobbyist and advocate, in the Nov. 5 general election. She is the daughter of the late Gov. Joan Finney, who also served as treasurer for 16 years.

Defending credentials

Jenkins served a two-year term in the Kansas House before her election to the Senate in 2000. She says she is the most qualified candidate because she is a certified public accountant.

“I think it’s a race totally about qualifications,” Jenkins said during a recent interview. “I see the state treasurer as someone who’s running the accounting department for the state.”

Wilson, from Overland Park, is a businessman who served two terms in the House. In 1998, he left the Legislature and worked on Shallenburger’s campaign for treasurer in 1998 and served as director of administration and unclaimed property in the treasurer’s office from 1999 into 2001.

He was elected Johnson County treasurer in November 2000, though under state law, his term didn’t begin until October 2001.

“I’m the only one who has all those credentials,” he said. “That’s the all-around experience we need.”

Insurance commissioner

In the insurance commissioner’s race, the Republican candidates are Sandy Praeger, of Lawrence, chairwoman of the Senate Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee; Bryan Riley, the 1998 GOP nominee and the owner of a Wichita long-term care insurance business; and David Powell, an El Dorado insurance agent and financial planner.

With incumbent Democrat Kathleen Sebelius running for governor, the party’s nominee is House Minority Leader Jim Garner, of Coffeyville.

Secretary of State Ron Thornburgh is running for re-election but faces no opposition in the GOP primary. The only Democrat seeking his office is Sen. David Haley, of Kansas City.