TOPEKA — Kansas voters may have elected Democrat Laura Kelly to the governor's office, but she will have to deal with a more conservative Legislature as a result of Tuesday's elections. That could make it harder for her to push through her top legislative priorities, which included increasing funding for public schools, expanding Medicaid and restoring some restrictions on concealed-carry gun rights. But ...
TOPEKA - Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer met privately on Wednesday with Democratic Gov.-elect Laura Kelly to begin the transition to a new administration. Reporters were given no notice of the meeting, but a statement issued afterward through the governor's office said both parties were committed to a smooth transition. "I would like to congratulate Governor-elect Kelly and her team and am proud to say we are ...
TOPEKA - Candidates in two close races on Tuesday's ballot expressed cautious optimism as they went into the polls to cast their own ballots. Laura Kelly, the Democratic candidate for governor, cast her vote in central Topeka around 9 a.m., while Steve Watkins, the Republican candidate in the 2nd District congressional race, voted in southeast Topeka about an hour later. "I think we’ve gotten our message out ...
TOPEKA – Democratic state Sen. Laura Kelly will become the 48th governor of Kansas in January. With 95 percent of the precincts reporting, unofficial results Tuesday night showed Kelly leading Republican Secretary of State Kris Kobach, 48-43 percent, a margin of about 51,000 votes, with independent candidate Greg Orman getting 6 percent. Kelly had made her campaign a referendum on former Gov. Sam Brownback, ...
TOPEKA – The major candidates in this week’s general election spent much of Monday crisscrossing Kansas as part of their last-minute get-out-the-vote drives. Voters in Kansas are selecting a new governor and at least one new member of the U.S. House. Also on the ballot are all the other statewide offices, all 125 members of the Kansas House, and one state senator in a special election in southeast ...
TOPEKA – For the first time in many years, the reliably Republican state of Kansas has three major races on the ballot, all with national implications, that could swing either way on Tuesday. The race for governor and the 2nd District congressional race in eastern Kansas are both rated toss-ups by a number of nonpartisan handicapping websites, while the 3rd District congressional race in suburban Kansas City ...