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Kansas' 2nd Congressional District election, 2016
2018 →
← 2014
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November 8, 2016 |
August 2, 2016 |
Lynn Jenkins  |
Lynn Jenkins |
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Cook Political Report: Solid R[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe R[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe R[3] |
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The 2nd Congressional District of Kansas held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 8, 2016.
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Lynn Jenkins (R) defeated Britani Potter (D) and James Houston Bales (L) in the general election on November 8, 2016. No candidate faced a primary opponent in August.[4][5]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. In Kansas, parties decide who may vote in their primaries. As of September 2025, the Democratic Party held an open primary and the Republican Party held a closed primary. Regardless of the party's rules, an unaffiliated voter can declare their affiliation with a party on the day of the primary and vote in that party's primary. Previously affiliated voters who want to change their affiliation to vote in a different party's primary must do so before the candidate filing deadline, which is June 1 or the next business day.[6][7]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Lynn Jenkins (R), who was first elected in 2008.
Kansas' 2nd Congressional District covers most of the eastern part of the state, except for the core of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The district includes Allen, Anderson, Atchinson, Bourbon, Brown, Cherokee, Coffey, Crawford, Doniphan, Douglas, Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Labette, Leavenworth, Linn, Montgomery, Nemaha, Neosho, Osage, Shawnee, Wilson, and Woodson counties. It also contains portions of Marshall and Miami counties. The capital of Topeka is located within this district.[8]
Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Lynn Jenkins Incumbent |
60.9% | 181,228 | |
| Democratic | Britani Potter | 32.6% | 96,840 | |
| Libertarian | James Houston Bales | 6.5% | 19,333 | |
| Total Votes | 297,401 | |||
| Source: Kansas Secretary of State | ||||
Candidates
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General election candidates: Lynn Jenkins   Britani Potter James Houston Bales |
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Primary candidates:[9] |
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Democratic |
Republican |
|
Third Party/Other |
|
Withdrew: James Pryor (D)[11] |
District history
2014
The 2nd Congressional District of Kansas held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Lynn Jenkins (R) defeated Margie Wakefield (D) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lynn Jenkins Incumbent |
57% | 128,742 | |
| Democratic | Margie Wakefield | 38.6% | 87,153 | |
| Libertarian | Chris Clemmons | 4.3% | 9,791 | |
| Total Votes | 225,686 | |||
| Source: Kansas Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
2012
The 2nd Congressional District of Kansas held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Lynn Jenkins (R) won the election in the district.[12]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lynn Jenkins Incumbent |
57% | 167,463 | |
| Democratic | Tobias Schlingensiepen | 38.7% | 113,735 | |
| Libertarian | Dennis Hawver | 4.3% | 12,520 | |
| Total Votes | 293,718 | |||
| Source: Kansas Secretary of State "2012 General Election Official Vote Totals" | ||||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Kansas elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Kansas in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| January 11, 2016 | Campaign finance | Report due covering January 1, 2015–December 31, 2015 | |
| June 1, 2016 | Ballot access | Candidate filing deadline for the primary election | |
| July 25, 2016 | Campaign finance | Report due covering January 1, 2016–July 21, 2016 | |
| July 28, 2016 | Campaign finance | Report due for last minute contributions of $300 or more received between July 22, 2016, and July 27, 2016 | |
| August 1, 2016 | Ballot access | Candidate filing deadline for the general election | |
| August 2, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| October 31, 2016 | Campaign finance | Report due covering July 22, 2016–October 27, 2016 | |
| November 3, 2016 | Campaign finance | Report due for last minute contributions of $300 or more received between October 28, 2016, and November 2, 2016 | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| January 10, 2017 | Campaign finance | Report due covering October 28, 2016–December 21, 2016 | |
| Source: Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, "2016 Election Cycle Reporting Periods and Due Dates for Campaign Finance Reports," updated April 21, 2015 Kansas Secretary of State, "2016 Election Information," accessed October 28, 2015 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas, 2016
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2016
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2016 House Race Ratings for July 11, 2016," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 House," accessed July 18, 2016
- ↑ Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "House Ratings," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Kansas Secretary of State, "Candidates for the 2016 Primary," accessed June 2, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Kansas House Primaries Results," August 2, 2016
- ↑ Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes, "Kan. Stat. Ann. § 25–3301," accessed September 12, 2025
- ↑ Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes, "Kan. Stat. Ann. § 25–3304," accessed September 12, 2025
- ↑ Kansas Redistricting Map "Map" accessed August 30, 2012
- ↑ Candidates are listed by party and alphabetically within each party.
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2016 General Candidate List," accessed June 15, 2016
- ↑ Email submission to Ballotpedia, May 5, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map," accessed August 15, 2012
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see: Public policy in the 2016 elections!
