Topeka ? Republican congressional candidate Lynn Jenkins remains on the defensive about missing meetings of a state pensions board.

The issue of Jenkins’ attendance has been raised by Democratic Rep. Nancy Boyda in their 2nd Congressional District race. Boyda made the remarks in a debate sponsored by The World Company at the Dole Institute of Politics.

Jenkins is state treasurer and automatically has a seat on the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System board of trustees. She missed meetings in July, August and September.

She and other Republicans say she’s kept up on the system’s business and that the missed meetings aren’t a significant issue.

But Democrats note the nation’s financial turmoil was causing the value of the system’s assets to drop.

To reinforce their point, they posted a 36-second video of Jenkins’ empty chair on YouTube.