photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

Lt. Gov. David Toland and Gov. Laura Kelly are pictured at a celebration at the Panasonic battery plant in De Soto on Jan. 17, 2025.

TOPEKA — State Sen. Ethan Corson announced Tuesday the decision to seek the Kansas Democratic Party’s nomination for governor with a campaign focused on improving education, lowering taxes and creating jobs.

Corson, a Fairway attorney elected to the Kansas Senate in 2020, said he was committed to advancing bipartisan leadership in state government.

“I’m not interested in the partisan battles you see on cable news,” he said in a statement. “Kansans want leaders who work together, regardless of political party, to get things done. That’s exactly what I’ve done in the state Senate, and that’s the kind of commonsense, bipartisan leadership I’ll bring to the governor’s office.”

He’ll compete for the party’s nomination in the August 2026 primary with fellow state Sen. Cindy Holscher of Overland Park. She launched her campaign in June.

photo by: Grace Hills/Kansas Reflector

Fairway Democrat Sen. Ethan Corson, shown here on March 26, 2025, rebuked Republicans’ “measly” efforts to reduce property taxes.

Lt. Gov. David Toland, who serves as secretary of Kansas Department of Commerce, said Tuesday he wouldn’t run for governor in 2026. There had been speculation that he would seek the Democratic nomination, and that prompted Republican attacks on Toland and the Department of Commerce.

“I’m especially proud of our administration’s economic record, where we’ve completely energized our state’s economic trajectory,” Toland said. “With so many critically important economic development projects in the works, I have made the decision not to run for governor, or any other elected office, in 2026. I believe my highest order of service to Kansas is to remain focused on our economy, not on politics.”

Corson, 43, worked for about seven years at a law firm in Washington, D.C., after completing law school. He entered government service with the U.S. Department of Commerce. In 2019, he returned to Kansas after a decade to become executive director of the state Democratic Party.

In the Senate, he said he collaborated with Republicans and Democrats to do away with the state’s sales tax on groceries, reduce property taxes, end the state income tax on Social Security benefits and provide relief to veterans, seniors and middle-class Kansans.

He opposed placement on statewide ballots in August 2026 of an amendment to the Kansas Constitution sponsored by GOP legislators to move to direct election of members of the Kansas Supreme Court. Currently, governors appoint justices from a list of finalists offered by a merit-review committee.

“The voice of the people is simply just going to be drowned out by dark money and special interest money flooding these elections,” Corson said.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is completing her second term and cannot seek reelection. The open seat created a logjam of Republican candidates, including Secretary of State Scott Schwab, Senate President Ty Masterson, Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt and former Gov. Jeff Colyer.

Corson said he was raised in Johnson County on core values of honesty, hard work and giving back when able.

“I’m a lifelong Kansan, a dad with young kids and a proud product of our public schools,” he said. “I’m running for governor to create opportunity for the next generation of Kansans, so they can build a life here. That means making sure Kansas has the best schools in America and is the most affordable place to live in America.”

Corson played college baseball at Garden City Community College and Washington University in St. Louis. He earned undergraduate and law degrees at Washington University.

He worked as an attorney in the District of Columbia and as a senior adviser to U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker during the administration of President Barack Obama.

In Washington, Corson was chief of staff at the International Trade Administration, which involved management of 2,200 employees in 75 countries. The federal position offered insight into international business and recruiting companies to Kansas, he said.

Corson resides in Fairway with his wife, Jenna, and their sons, Isaac and Aiden. He’s been an attorney with the firm of Gates Shields Ferguson Swall Hammond in Overland Park.

— Tim Carpenter is a journalist with the Topeka-based news service Kansas Reflector.