Topeka ? Think of the 2002 race for governor as a fishing contest with Democratic nominee Kathleen Sebelius and Republican nominee Tim Shallenburger casting from opposite banks of a river of voters.

One-third of the voters are on Sebelius’ stringer; one-third are on Shallenburger’s stringer.

The winner on Nov. 5 will be the one who catches the most from the remaining one-third in the river.

Both Shallenburger and Sebelius will use the same bait to attract those undecided voters the issues pollsters say matter most to everyday Kansans.

“All the political consultants for these candidates are saying, ‘Back it down. You are now mainstream,'” said Larry Harris, a principal with Mason-Dixon Research & Polling.

Both candidates say they are mainstream, but generally Shallenburger is most closely identified with right-wing issues, and Sebelius with those on the left.

To appeal to the middle, while not abandoning their respective bases, will take political skill.

Following the script

“People can sense if you are changing your tune. That seems so politicianesque,” said Kris Van Meteren, executive director of the conservative Kansas Republican Assembly, which endorsed Shallenburger in his GOP primary victory last week. “People in general elections are looking for someone who is honest and states what they are for and sticks with it.”

At this point, neither candidate has strayed far from a script that will appeal to most voters.

Despite evidence the state will face a worse revenue shortfall than the one that just produced a $300 million tax increase, Shallenburger has signed a no-tax pledge. Sebelius, who didn’t face a primary opponent, deflects discussion of taxes, saying that a top-to-bottom review of state government is needed to determine whether current taxes are being spent efficiently.

And Sebelius and Shallenburger have said they would support public education funding, and that the school funding formula needs an overhaul. Shallenburger has said schools could sustain a small budget cut if the only option was to increase taxes.

Not surprisingly, the top two issues with voters are taxes and schools, according to a recent World Company poll.

Which Republican?

Because the candidates’ views on these major issues are so close, how will Shallenburger and Sebelius distinguish themselves from each other?

As the Republican Party nominee, Shallenburger, currently the state treasurer, would seem to have the advantage because of the vast dominance of the GOP in Kansas. Forty-six percent of registered voters are Republican, 27 percent are Democrat, and 27 percent are unaffiliated. Every statewide elected official in Kansas is a Republican, except for Sebelius, who is state insurance commissioner.

But Shallenburger has to mend the deep rift between the conservative, anti-abortion wing of the party, and the so-called moderate wing of the party, whose members support a woman’s right to an abortion, a position shared by Sebelius. Sebelius even chose a Wichita businessman, John Moore, previously a Republican, as her running mate for lieutenant governor.

Shallenburger’s spokesman Bob Murray said Shallenburger had been unfairly portrayed as “the right-wing, Christian conservative.” Murray said, “He’s the Republican nominee.”

After his primary victory, Shallenburger immediately huddled with GOP leaders to try to unite the party.

“They’ll have to make a choice,” between candidates, Murray said.

Finding the issues

But if Sebelius can attract moderate Republicans on the abortion issue, Shallenburger can expect to tap into the traditionally Democratic vein of labor votes because of his pro-labor voting record and populist appeal.

Both candidates’ camps say their candidate will run on their records in statewide office and the Legislature Sebelius and Shallenburger served at the same time in the Kansas House. But neither camp would reveal much about their strategies for the campaign.

Nicole Corcoran-Basso, a spokeswoman for Sebelius, said Sebelius would run an issue-oriented campaign.

“It’s the issues. That’s what people want, and not about Tim Shallenburger. That’s what we’ve heard from Mr. Shallenburger no new taxes. There is a lot more to the discussion, such as the future of education and health care,” she said.

Murray said Shallenburger would continue to campaign on the issues that made him successful in the GOP primary making government more efficient and not increasing taxes.

“We’re not going to change our theme,” Murray said. “There is a clear difference, one candidate is a conservative, and one is an ultra-liberal. She will try to run to the center and to the right as much as she can.”