Kansas groups that hoped to use the 1 percent increase in the state’s sales tax as an election hammer apparently didn’t have much success, at least in Tuesday’s primary.

Election facts compiled by the Hawver News Service in Topeka indicate that whether legislators voted for or against the sales tax didn’t have much impact on their election outcomes.

Among Republican House members who faced primary opposition, six who voted for the sales tax and six who voted against it all won their primary races. One Republican who voted “yes” and three who voted “no” were defeated, although the tax vote may not have been the deciding issue.

Among those who voted against the sales tax was former House Speaker Melvin Neufeld who suffered a surprising defeat at the hands of a 22-year-old former Washburn University student government president. Garrett Love’s website indicates he, like Neufeld, is a conservative, but the newcomer’s use of the Internet and social media in his campaign may have been a factor.

One of the groups that vowed to make the sales tax votes an election issue was the Kansas Chamber of Commerce. The fact that the tax litmus test failed to catch on probably accounts for why only two of 11 candidates endorsed by the chamber won their primaries. The chamber supported the challengers in five races that were won by Republican incumbents who voted for the sales tax.

It’s also interesting to note that except for a couple of races, the chamber’s endorsements were identical to the 10 endorsements made by the Kansas Republican Assembly, a group that describes itself as working “to build a powerful, enduring coalition of economic and social conservatives.” That’s either an odd coincidence or an insight on where the Kansas Chamber stands these days.

The look at how tax votes affected — or didn’t affect — election outcomes is interesting for a couple of reasons. The conventional wisdom always is that even when people are unhappy with government they often like their own local representatives. The problem, they think, must be with the people other voters elect.

It’s also an indication that, to many voters, a vote in favor of the tax increase was either acceptable or at least not enough to tip the balance against a candidate they otherwise liked.

There is legitimate concern at the local, state and national level about rising taxes, but it apparently isn’t the defining issue that various groups across the country would like to make it.