Final count: Kobach wins Kansas GOP primary by 350 votes

photo by: Topeka Capital-Journal via AP

Kansas Republican gubernatorial candidate Kris Kobach and his wife Heather take the stage to thank their supporters and send them home for the night after problems with polls in Johnson County, Kan., delayed the final results until the early morning on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2018, at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Topeka, Kan. (Chris Neal/The Topeka Capital-Journal via AP)

TOPEKA – Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach won the Aug. 7 Republican primary for governor by 350 votes over incumbent Gov. Jeff Colyer, according to final numbers from all 105 counties.

Those results were posted on the secretary of state’s website Tuesday after the last handful of counties completed their canvasses on Monday.

The final tally from all 105 county canvasses show Kobach receiving 128,838 votes, or 40.6 percent, and Colyer receiving 128,488 votes, or 40.5 percent. Topeka physician and former state Sen. Jim Barnett placed third with about 9 percent of the vote, followed by Insurance Commissioner Ken Selzer, who received 8 percent.

The 350 ballots separating Kobach and Colyer represents 0.1 percent of the more than 317,000 ballots cast in the primary, making it one of the closest statewide races in modern Kansas electoral history.

The final numbers are still unofficial until they are certified by the state Board of Canvassers, a panel that consists of the governor, attorney general and secretary of state. A date for that board to meet has not been scheduled, but by law it must occur before Aug. 31.

However, Colyer conceded the race on Tuesday, Aug. 14, and has said he will not challenge the results or ask for a recount, making it highly unlikely that the final numbers from the counties will change.

In another closely watched race, Rep. Steven Becker, R-Buhler, lost his bid for re-election. On election night, unofficial results showed him trailing behind GOP challenger Paul Waggoner by a single vote, but the official canvass in Reno County showed Waggoner winning by five votes.

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