The Senate Confirmation Oversight Committee was right to endorse the reappointment of three Kansas Board of Regents members despite the objections of the Senate minority leader.

All three regents — Helen Van Etten, Shane Bangerter and Ann Brandau-Murguia — have served the board well. Republican Gov. Sam Brownback was right to reappoint them to new four-year terms.

Under Kansas law, no more than five of the nine Regents can be from the same party. Prior to his appointment to the Board of Regents in 2013, Bangerter switched party affiliation, going from Republican to independent. Democratic State Sen. Anthony Hensley, of Topeka, opposed the reappointment of Bangerter, of Dodge City, and Van Etten, of Topeka.

Hensley said he opposed Bangerter because of his party switch. “He switched parties, became an independent, so he could comply with the statute that you only can have so many Republicans on the Board of Regents,” Hensley said. “I objected to that then, and my objection still stands now, as you shouldn’t be flouting the statute. Certainly he was within the letter of the law, but he wasn’t complying with the intent of the law.”

Hensley said he opposed Van Etten because of her “right-wing” political philosophy.

But Hensley offered nothing more than political disagreement in opposing the appointments. Bangerter, a Dodge City attorney, downplayed Regents’ party affiliations.

“Regardless of party affiliation or no affiliation as applies to myself, I have found my colleagues and myself passionately and zealously focused on bettering higher education in our great state of Kansas,” he said. “I know Senator Hensley shares that passion and I look forward to working with him and the entire legislature in restoring the funding cuts experienced by higher education in the past few years.”

There is no evidence that Bangerter, Van Etten and Brandau-Murguia have been anything other than capable and conscientious members of the Board of Regents. They have served honorably and all three merited reappointment and confirmation.