Rep. Tim Huelskamp, of Kansas' 1st District, is shown at left. His challenger in the 2016 primary, Dr. Roger Marshall, a physician from Great Bend, is shown at right.

Topeka ? Congressional races in the 1st District of western Kansas are rarely much of a contest. In fact, in the last half century, only five people have held the seat, all of them Republicans, with few ever facing a serious challenge.

But that’s not the case this year as incumbent Rep. Tim Huelskamp, of Fowler, faces an unusually strong challenge from Great Bend physician Roger Marshall in a race that is drawing millions of dollars in campaign spending, much of it from independent outside organizations.

Michael Smith, who teaches political science at Emporia State University, said he was surprised by the amount of outside money being spent on the race, but not by the fact that Huelskamp is drawing such stiff opposition.

“For many people, it goes all the way back to his days in the Kansas Senate,” Smith said. “People find his personality to be abrasive, and they find him difficult to work with. And being removed from the Ag Committee was not a good fit for the 1st District, which is very much a farm district.”

According to federal pre-primary campaign finance reports that were due Thursday, Marshall has raised and spent considerably more money than Huelskamp so far this election cycle.

The reports show Marshall raised $866,000 since launching his campaign in April 2015, while Huelskamp raised only $676,000. And the Marshall campaign spent nearly $624,000 compared with Huelskamp’s $537,000.

But Huelskamp came into the race with a large war chest already in place, and he enters the final days of the primary campaign with considerably more cash on hand: $626,000, compared with Marshall’s $243,000.

Mark Kelly, a spokesman for the Huelskamp campaign, pointed out that nearly $200,000 of Marshall’s receipts came from loans Marshall himself made to his own campaign.

“Dr. Marshall isn’t outraising Tim,” Kelly said. “If you look at our cash on hand position, we’ll have more than enough resources going into the final days” of the primary campaign.

Marshall’s campaign did not respond Thursday to requests for comment.

The candidates’ own fundraising, however, only tells part of the story. In the last few weeks alone, well-financed independent groups such as Club for Growth and the ESA Fund have poured in just more than $1 million on their own, most of it for negative advertising against one or the other candidate.

Smith said the amount of independent spending in the district is surprising for a primary election.

“The conventional wisdom is, you would think those groups would want to keep their powder dry for the general elections,” he said. “But again, H has a reputation of being a lone wolf and pretty bristly.”

In the 1st District, though, the Republican primary typically determines the eventual winner. This year, there is no Democrat in the race. Kerry Burt of the Libertarian Party will appear on the general election ballot. And Alan LaPolice, from Clyde in north-central Kansas, is said to be gathering signatures to file by petition to run as an independent.

In 1960, Bob Dole won the western Kansas seat, known then as the 6th District. It has since been combined with other districts and renumbered as western Kansas lost population. Dole was succeeded by Keith Sebelius, then Pat Roberts, Jerry Moran, and now Huelskamp, all of them Republicans.

In this year’s GOP primary, Marshall has been the biggest beneficiary of independent spending in the district. About $624,000 has been spent this month, either supporting him or opposing Huelskamp.

Huelskamp has drawn about $447,000 in independent expenditures, either supporting him or opposing Marshall.

The biggest single source of independent spending, according to Federal Elections Commission reports, has been the ESA Fund, a group that includes families involved in ownership of the Chicago Cubs and World Wrestling Entertainment.

ESA Fund has spent more than $413,000, mainly in TV ads, but also in radio and newspaper ads, direct mail and telephone calls.

Huelskamp has benefited from the next largest source of independent spending, Club for Growth Action, which has dropped in a little more than $250,000, nearly all of it on TV ads supporting Huelskamp.

Kelly said the Huelskamp campaign is not concerned about the outside spending.

“No amount of money is going to be able to overcome Congressman Huelskamp’s proven conservative record,” he said.

The GOP primary in the 1st District appears to be the only competitive congressional race in Kansas this year, at least based on campaign finance reports.

In the 2nd District, Rep. Lynn Jenkins, R-Topeka, has raised nearly $1.7 million this election cycle and goes into the general election with $1.5 million in cash on hand. She faces no primary opponent.

Her general election challenger, Britani Potter of Ottawa, had not submitted a campaign finance report by Thursday afternoon.

Third District Rep. Kevin Yoder, R-Overland Park, has raised about $1.8 million this cycle and goes into the general election with nearly $2.2 million on hand.

His GOP primary challenger, Greg Goode, of Louisburg, has raised only $31,840. Yoder’s main general election challenger, Jay Sidie, of Mission Woods, who is supported by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, has raised only $104,133.

In the Wichita-centered 4th District, incumbent Rep. Mike Pompeo has raised $792,482 and enters the general election cycle with $1.1 million on hand.

Pompeo faces no primary opposition. Two Democrats are vying for the right to challenge him in the general election: Daniel B. Giroux, who has raised $169,000; and Robert Leon Tillman, who raised $65,563.