A Lawrence resident has filed to run for Kansas Secretary of State as a third party candidate.

Scott Morgan, who recently became the executive director of the United Kansas party, filed paperwork this week to seek the Secretary of State position, which serves as the state’s chief election officer, among other duties.

Morgan is hoping that voters will consider a third party candidate for the position, with the idea that the state’s chief elections officer should be less partisan.

“In Kansas, the Secretary of State has traditionally been a quiet steward of elections and public trust,” Morgan said. “We should not allow this office to become yet another source of partisan conflict driven more by party interests than concern for Kansas voters.”

Morgan’s run also is important for the United Kansas party. Under state law, such third parties need to have at least one statewide candidate garner a significant number of votes in order to remain qualified as a political party that has access to general election ballots.

Morgan is a former Lawrence school board member, who previously served as a key staff member for Republican Senators Bob Dole and Nancy Landon Kassebaum at various points of their careers.