Elaine Bowers

Elaine Bowers

Republican Party

Kansas State Senate District 36

Tenure

2013 - Present

Term ends

2029

Years in position

12

Prior offices

Kansas House of Representatives District 107

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Compensation

Base salary

$86.66/session day

Per diem

$166/day

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 5, 2024

Education

Associate

Cloud Country Community College, 1983

Personal

Religion

Christian: Catholic

Contact

Official website

Official Facebook

Official Twitter

Campaign website

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Elaine Bowers (Republican Party) is a member of the Kansas State Senate, representing District 36. She assumed office on January 14, 2013. Her current term ends on January 8, 2029.

Bowers (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Kansas State Senate to represent District 36. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Bowers' professional experience includes working as an executive secretary for the Concordia Chamber of Commerce and office manager for Concordia Auto Mart.

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.

2023-2024

Bowers was assigned to the following committees:

• Senate Judiciary Committee
• Senate Local Government Committee
• Transparency and Ethics Committee (decommissioned), Chair
• Senate Transportation Committee
• Utilities Committee
• Corrections and Juvenile Justice Oversight Committee (decommissioned)
• State-Tribal Relations Committee

2021-2022

Bowers was assigned to the following committees:

• Corrections and Juvenile Justice Oversight Committee (decommissioned)
• Senate Judiciary Committee
• Senate Local Government Committee, Vice chair
• Transparency and Ethics Committee (decommissioned), Chair
• Senate Transportation Committee
• Utilities Committee

2019-2020

Bowers was assigned to the following committees:

• Legislative Post Audit Committee
• Senate Judiciary Committee
• Senate Interstate Cooperation Committee
• Senate Transportation Committee
• Utilities Committee

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Kansas committee assignments, 2017
• Ethics, Elections, and Local Government, Chair
• Judiciary
• Utilities
• Legislative Post Audit

2015 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Bowers served on the following committees:

Kansas committee assignments, 2015
• Financial Institutions and Insurance, Vice Chair
• Public Health and Welfare
• Agriculture

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Bowers served on the following committees:

Kansas committee assignments, 2013
• Public Health and Welfare, Vice chair
• Agriculture
• Financial Institutions and Insurance

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Bowers served on the following committees:

Kansas committee assignments, 2011
• Agriculture and Natural Resources
• Federal and State Affairs
• Social Services Budget, Vice chair

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Bowers served on the following committees:

Kansas committee assignments, 2009
• Commerce and Labor
• Federal and State Affairs
• Agriculture and Natural Resources

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2024

See also: Kansas State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for Kansas State Senate District 36

Incumbent Elaine Bowers won election in the general election for Kansas State Senate District 36 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elaine Bowers (R)	100.0	33,162

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 33,162
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Kansas State Senate District 36

Incumbent Elaine Bowers defeated Robert Bonanata in the Republican primary for Kansas State Senate District 36 on August 6, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elaine Bowers	83.1	9,654
		Robert Bonanata	16.9	1,966

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 11,620
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Bowers in this election.

2020

See also: Kansas State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Kansas State Senate District 36

Incumbent Elaine Bowers won election in the general election for Kansas State Senate District 36 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elaine Bowers (R)	100.0	31,549

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 31,549
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Kansas State Senate District 36

Incumbent Elaine Bowers advanced from the Republican primary for Kansas State Senate District 36 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Elaine Bowers	100.0	15,665

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 15,665
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

See also: Kansas State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for the Kansas State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016.

Incumbent Elaine Bowers defeated Brian Angevine in the Kansas State Senate District 36 general election.

Kansas State Senate, District 36 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Elaine Bowers Incumbent	85.12%	26,816
	Democratic	Brian Angevine	14.88%	4,686
Total Votes				31,502
Source: Kansas Secretary of State

Brian Angevine ran unopposed in the Kansas State Senate District 36 Democratic primary.

Kansas State Senate, District 36 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Democratic	Brian Angevine  (unopposed)

Incumbent Elaine Bowers ran unopposed in the Kansas State Senate District 36 Republican primary.

Kansas State Senate, District 36 Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Republican	Elaine Bowers Incumbent (unopposed)

2012

See also: Kansas State Senate elections, 2012

Bowers won election in the 2012 election for Kansas State Senate District 36. Bowers defeated Kyle Abbott in the August 7 Republican primary and defeated Marquis Clark (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.

Kansas State Senate, District 36, General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Elaine Bowers	82.9%	26,051
	Democratic	Marquis Clark	17.1%	5,371
Total Votes				31,422

Kansas State Senate, District 36 Republican Primary, 2012

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Elaine Bowers	64.3%	9,377
Kyle Abbott	35.7%	5,216
Total Votes		14,593

2010

See also: Kansas House of Representatives elections, 2010

Bowers won re-election to the 107th District Seat in 2010 with no opposition. She was also unopposed in the GOP primary.

2008

See also: Kansas House of Representatives elections, 2008

On November 4, 2008, Bowers was re-elected to the 107th District Seat in the Kansas House of Representatives with no opposition. She raised $16,571 for her campaign.

Kansas House of Representatives, District 107
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Elaine Bowers (R)		8,571	100%

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Elaine Bowers did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Elaine Bowers did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Elaine Bowers campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Kansas State Senate District 36	Won general	$96,750	$0
2020	Kansas State Senate District 36	Won general	$81,737	N/A**
2016	Kansas State Senate, District 36	Won	$107,606	N/A**
2012	Kansas State Senate, District 36	Won	$75,457	N/A**
2010	Kansas State House, District 107	Won	$12,900	N/A**
2008	Kansas State House, District 107	Won	$16,571	N/A**
2006	Kansas State House, District 107	Won	$17,285	N/A**
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Kansas

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Kansas scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2024

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show].

In 2024, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 8 to April 30. Americans for Prosperity-Kansas Legislators are scored on their stances on conservative fiscal policy. Kansas Family Voice Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2023

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show].

In 2023, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 9 to April 28. Kansas Family Voice Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2022

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show].

In 2022, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 10 to May 23. Kansas Family Voice Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." MainStream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].

In 2021, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 11 to May 26. Americans for Prosperity-Kansas Legislators are scored on their stances on conservative fiscal policy. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." MainStream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2020

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show].

In 2020, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 13 to May 21. A special session convened from June 3 to June 4. Kansas AFL-CIO: House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to labor issues. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." MainStream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2019

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show].

In 2019, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 14 through May 29. Kansas AFL-CIO: House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to labor issues. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." MainStream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2018

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show].

In 2018, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 8 through April 7. Kansas AFL-CIO: House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to labor issues. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." MainStream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2017

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show].

In 2017, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 9 through June 26. Kansas AFL-CIO: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to labor issues. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." MainStream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2016

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show].

In 2016, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 11 through June 1. A special session was held from June 23 to June 24 over education funding. AFT- Kansas Legislators are scored on their votes on bills that the organization highlights. Kansas AFL-CIO: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to labor issues. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." Mainstream Coalition Legislators are scored by the MainStream Coalition on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Sierra Club Kansas Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2015

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show].

In 2015, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 12 through June 12. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on their support for bills that the organization lists as promoting "individual liberty, limited government, free markets and student-focused education." The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2014

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show].

In 2014, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 13 through May 30. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on economic and educational issues. MainStream Coalition Legislators in Johnson, Wyandotte, and Douglas counties are scored on whether they voted with the moderate position on selected bills. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2013

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show].
In 2013, the Kansas State Legislature was in session from January 14 to June 20. Kansas Policy Institute Legislators are scored on economic and educational issues. Wichita Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Bowers and her husband, Charlie, have four children. She is a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, Girl State Program, Independent Auto Dealers Association, and Rotary International Club.

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Kansas State Senate District 36

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by -	Kansas State Senate District 36 2013-Present	Succeeded by -
Preceded by -	Kansas House of Representatives District 107 2007-2013	Succeeded by -

[show]

Current members of the Kansas State Senate

Leadership

Senate President:Ty Masterson

Majority Leader:Chase Blasi

Minority Leader:Dinah Sykes

Senators

District 1

Craig Bowser (R)

District 2

Marci Francisco (D)

District 3

Rick Kloos (R)

District 4

David Haley (D)

District 5

Jeff Klemp (R)

District 6

Pat Pettey (D)

District 7

Ethan Corson (D)

District 8

Cindy Holscher (D)

District 9

Beverly Gossage (R)

District 10

Mike Thompson (R)

District 11

Kellie Warren (R)

District 12

Caryn Tyson (R)

District 13

Tim Shallenburger (R)

District 14

Michael Fagg (R)

District 15

Virgil Peck (R)

District 16

Ty Masterson (R)

District 17

Mike Argabright (R)

District 18

Kenny Titus (R)

District 19

Patrick Schmidt (D)

District 20

Brenda Dietrich (R)

District 21

Dinah Sykes (D)

District 22

Brad Starnes (R)

District 23

Adam Thomas (R)

District 24

Scott Hill (R)

District 25

Mary Ware (D)

District 26

Chase Blasi (R)

District 27

Joe Claeys (R)

District 28

Mike Petersen (R)

District 29

Oletha Faust-Goudeau (D)

District 30

Renee Erickson (R)

District 31

Stephen Owens (R)

District 32

Larry Alley (R)

District 33

Tory Blew (R)

District 34

Michael Murphy (R)

District 35

TJ Rose (R)

District 36

Elaine Bowers (R)

District 37

Douglas Shane (R)

District 38

Ronald Ryckman (R)

District 39

Bill Clifford (R)

District 40

Rick Billinger (R)

Republican Party (31)

Democratic Party (9)