Earlier this week, Kathleen Sebelius was the speaker at the noon Lawrence Rotary Club. The Kansas insurance commissioner is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor. At this time, she is unopposed in the primary, and it is reasonable to believe she will be the only candidate. She will have a cakewalk into the general election.

Sebelius is articulate, attractive and makes a favorable impression on her audiences. She hones her presentation to the interests and needs of specific audiences, and she is quick to point out why she believes she has compiled an excellent record in her insurance commissioner post.

One interested listener at the Rotary meeting told this writer, “She is going to be a tough candidate to beat.” To which this reporter replied, “It all depends on who the Republicans have to offer as competition.”

It’s a good bet most of those in the Rotary Club audience thought Sebelius did a good job. Some who are active in Republican political affairs were not overly complimentary of her presentation, but she probably merited a “B” on her appearance before the Lawrence crowd.

She should be very happy in her current position because she doesn’t have opposition within her party, she will not have to stage a costly primary campaign, and she won’t have to answer any negative, damaging charges that might be launched against her if she had to fight to get the party nomination.

At this time, the big question is who will be her challenger from the Republican Party.

As has been noted by many knowledgeable observers, the Republican Party is in a mess. The GOP doesn’t have a handful of top-flight candidates to fight it out in a primary campaign and then be in a strong position to challenge for the governorship in the general election.

It is hard to believe the state Republican Party is in such bad shape. Kansas is one of the most Republican states in the nation. Only two of the 105 counties voted for Al Gore in the 2000 presidential election, and Republicans enjoy big majorities in the Kansas Legislature.

Kansas Atty. Gen. Carla Stovall had been considered the top candidate until she dropped out. Her running mate, House Speaker Kent Glasscock of Manhattan, at one time wanted to seek the governorship but changed his mind, or was told to change his mind, and elected to run for lieutenant governor on Stovall’s ticket. Wichita Mayor Bob Knight is in the race, as well as State Treasurer Tim Shallenburger. Dan Bloom, a former Eudora school superintendent, is the long shot for the GOP nomination at this time.

Clay Blair, a successful Kansas City businessman and current chairman of the Kansas Board of Regents, has been considering entering the race. He has been encouraged by many to toss his hat in the ring, even though it is late in the game, and he faces a major name-recognition challenge.

Various individuals who already have announced their plans to seek the governorship, on both sides of the political fence, have visited with Blair about his candidacy and whether he might find a place on his ticket for one of them. Some also have wondered whether he would consider a lieutenant governor’s bid with someone else going after the top position.

Still others within the Republican Party have said Blair has an obligation to become a candidate to give the GOP a chance to defeat Sebelius. Blair has compiled a superior record as chairman of the regents, and education, improving education and providing a better education climate in Kansas would be among his major campaign issues.

Blair has canvassed the state to assess his chances, but it is understood he has reservations about becoming a candidate. It is known his primary focus at this time is on education and the funding and approval of various bills now before the Kansas Legislature. He does not want to do anything that might distract attention from efforts to see the best possible funding for higher education and also for K-12 schools.

It seems unfair to make the argument to Blair that he needs to run to save the Republican Party from defeat in the November election. The state GOP and many of its top leaders got their party into the current embarrassing mess. It is not up to Blair to make the sacrifice to seek the governor’s office just to “save the party.”

If Blair honestly thought he could win the primary and defeat Sebelius, and if he entered the race for the sole purpose of trying to do what he could for the benefit of Kansas, not just the GOP, then it might make sense for him to enter the political game. However, it’s thought that if the successful businessman decided to run, he would not announce his candidacy until after the legislative session.

If he did become a candidate, it would seem his best bet would be to run on a platform of being a man of action who gets things done, a newcomer to politics who is vitally interested in improving education at all levels and in figuring out ways to attract new industry and new jobs to the state. Ideally, he would enter the race as a one-term governor, not afraid to step on toes and take unpopular positions if it was good for Kansans. He wouldn’t be in the hip pocket of the GOP, and he would be quick to work with Democrats.

Kansas needs a strong leader who can bring the state together and offer a challenging vision for the state and its people. The state has been adrift for far too long. It is too divided and, for some reason, there isn’t the enthusiasm necessary to have Kansas become the leader among states in this part of the country.

Unfortunately, at this time, there isn’t much to get excited about in Kansas politics. The chances of a strong, energetic, able individual with courage and vision moving into the governor’s office next year don’t look good. It looks like more of the same. Where are the true leaders in the state who are willing to make the sacrifice to seek elective office, at the local, as well as the state, level?