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Kansas gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018 (August 7 Republican primary)

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Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Kansas
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: June 1, 2018
Primary: August 7, 2018
General: November 6, 2018
Pre-election incumbent(s):
Gov. Jeff Colyer (Republican)
Lt. Gov. Tracey Mann (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in Kansas
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Toss-up
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Toss-up
Inside Elections: Toss-up
Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness
State executive elections in 2018
Impact of term limits in 2018
State government trifectas
State government triplexes
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
Kansas
executive elections
Governor

Lieutenant governor
Attorney general
Secretary of state
Treasurer
Insurance commissioner
State board of education

Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R) defeated six other candidates, including incumbent Jeff Colyer (R), in Kansas' 2018 Republican gubernatorial primary. Kobach and Colyer presented voters with both policy and style differences against the backdrop of two significant events from 2017: the state legislature's reversal of several tax cuts enacted by Brownback in 2012 and the Kansas Supreme Court's ruling that the state's school financing formula was unconstitutional.[1][2]

Formerly Brownback's lieutenant governor, Colyer became governor after Brownback's confirmation as U.S. ambassador at-large for international religious freedom.

Kobach spoke out against the 2017 tax cut repeal. He argued that the Brownback administration (including Colyer) erred in reducing taxes without sufficiently reducing spending. Colyer's campaign said that he would consider signing legislation to reduce taxes if brought to his desk and that, as lieutenant governor, he reduced spending while increasing services within the state's Medicaid system.[3]

In April 2018, Colyer signed a bill to increase public school funding by more than $500 million in five years. Colyer said the bill would increase classroom funding without raising taxes and argued that consensus-building is essential to ending legal challenges to the state's school financing: "I don’t scream and shout. I get results." Kobach opposed the increased spending and questioned Colyer's statement that a tax increase would not be needed to fund it. He criticized the state supreme court's involvement in school funding, saying, "It's time the legislature stood up and it's time the governor stood up with them and pushed back against this court. It's time to stop getting rolled."[4][5]

Colyer highlighted his experience in the Reagan and Bush Sr. administrations, while Kobach touted his ties to Donald Trump, including an endorsement from Donald Trump Jr., who campaigned on Kobach's behalf.[6][7]


The winner of the general election was involved in the state's redistricting process following the 2020 Census. Under Kansas state law, the state Legislature is responsible for drawing new maps for U.S. House and state legislative seats following the completion of the census. The governor has the power to veto these district map proposals.[8] Click here for more information on redistricting procedures.



Candidates and election results

See also: Statistics on gubernatorial candidates, 2018

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Governor of Kansas on August 7, 2018.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Governor of Kansas

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Kris Kobach
Kris Kobach
 
40.6
 
128,832
Image of Jeff Colyer
Jeff Colyer
 
40.5
 
128,489
Image of Jim Barnett
Jim Barnett
 
8.8
 
27,994
Image of Ken Selzer
Ken Selzer
 
7.8
 
24,804
Image of Patrick Kucera
Patrick Kucera
 
1.0
 
3,212
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Tyler Ruzich
 
0.7
 
2,275
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Joseph Tutera Jr.
 
0.5
 
1,559

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 317,165
Candidate Connection = 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.

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Lieutenant governor

Republican Party Republican primary candidates

Recount laws in Kansas

Section 25-3107 of the Kansas Statutes describe the state's recount laws and procedures.

Any candidate may request a recount in any number of counties at any time prior to 5 p.m. on the second Friday following the election. The candidate is not required to pay for the costs associated with the recount if the initial results were separated by a margin of less than one half of one percent of all votes cast. Otherwise, the candidate posts a bond which is returned only in cases where the recount changes the election's outcome.

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
Kansas Governor 2018, Republican primary
Poll Kris Kobach Jeff ColyerJim BarnettKen SelzerTyler RuzichPatrick KuceraJoseph Tutera Jr.UndecidedMargin of errorSample size
JMC Analytics
July 24-26, 2018		 34%25%11%8%1%1%1%20%+/-4.4500
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Kansas Governor 2018, Republican primary
Poll Jeff Colyer Kris KobachJim BarnettWink HartmanMark HuttonKen SelzerUndecided/OtherMargin of errorSample size
Remington Research Group
(May 14-15, 2018)		 29%27%9%0%0%5%30%+/-2.61,441
Remington Research Group
(February 13-14, 2018)		 23%21%8%5%3%3%37%+/-2.31,806
AVERAGES 26% 24% 8.5% 2.5% 1.5% 4% 33.5% +/-2.45 1,623.5
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.


Endorsements


Campaign themes and policy stances

Campaign themes

Republican Party Jim Barnett

“

How Do We Improve the Kansas Economy?
Kansas lost over 12,000 private sector jobs in the last year, yet we have tens of thousands of other jobs across the state going unfilled. This is what I call a jobs stalemate.

The result of this stalemate is a state with a stagnant economy, where too many jobs are leaving, and others go unfilled because workers don’t have the required skills or training. It is no wonder our young people don’t stay and others of all ages get discouraged.

My plan recognizes that job growth comes from the ground up, not the top down. Yes, the state has a role, but that role needs to be tailored to the needs of individual communities and businesses. A one-size-fits-all approach just won’t work.

My framework for more skilled workers and better paying jobs is built on four key pillars. First, we need to get the basics right. State government is finally on track to get its fiscal house in order. Now we need to build on that progress in a variety of areas, including work force development, infrastructure repair, education, health care, and overall quality of life.

Second, we need a regional approach to economic development, one that recognizes local control and input. This is especially true in industry. What is needed in Garden City may not be needed in Olathe.

Third, we need to Identify and support high potential, high performing industries. Healthcare technology is one of the nation’s fastest growing industry sectors. We have components of it here in Kansas. As governor, my job will be to make Kansas as supportive of these industries as we can be.

Fourth, is what I call “Enterprising Academics. What I mean by that is an educational system and a business system that work in partnership to provide the skills our workers to need to succeed and the knowledge our businesses need to compete. I look forward to supporting and enhancing efforts currently underway in this regard.

As Governor, What Would You Do About Our Education System?
Education reform is the driver of the Kansas economy in the 21st Century. My program covers three basic categories, what I call the ABC’s of education reform in Kansas.

A is for Advancing Childhood Development. Up to 25% of our children under-perform in the classroom and there are steps we can take at an early age to remedy this. There are individual school systems in Kansas that have found ways to do this on their own, in part by combining existing programs together in new and better ways. As governor, I will make improved childhood development a statewide effort, so all school districts in the state can benefit from knowing what works and learning best practices to make progress.

One key part of better child development is overcoming adverse childhood events or experiences. Things like neglect, abuse or even sustained lack of parental interaction, that occur in the early years of childhood can mark kids for life if not remedied. Making progress here has the added benefit of reducing longer term problems like addiction, mental health and other issues that stem from the adverse early childhood events.

B means Be out of Court. For most of the past 12 years, decisions around education funding have been stuck in court. We need to end this cycle. We cannot make the necessary changes we need in education if we are constantly arguing in front of a judge. We should be working together for the changes and innovations that will help our children get ahead.

The court has clearly marked school finance as inequitable and inadequate. But while more money in the system will be needed, there are many areas where more money is not the solution.

A key part of the problem is that the Court used what are known as “the Rose standards” as part of their decision. These standards stem from court decisions in Kentucky in 1989. I believe the Court did us a disfavor relying so heavily on the Rose Standards, but they had little else to use as guidelines since the legislature had put them into statute.

As the next governor, I will work to bring people together to develop educational standards that are pertinent to Kansas, that are measurable, and will help our children succeed.

C is for Careers. We need to change our focus from the earning and amassing of credits to learning the skills to build careers. This recognizes the importance of work force development as one of the engines needed for our economic growth.

We are 6 to 10 years behind in developing the work force we need in Kansas today. There are jobs going unfilled in Kansas right now because we have not helped our citizens get the skills necessary to do them.

I support programs in our secondary schools that help our children be ready for college. But the notion that everyone needs to go to college to have a productive life is wrong. People can obtain a good education in our Community and Technical College. They can get high paying jobs that provide for their families and help grow the Kansas economy. We should be teaching skills like coding in elementary school and it should be fun. We should be encouraging life-long technical learning to help Kansans keep up with changes in their occupation and with technology in general.

Is Expanding Access to Medicaid Insurance Good For Kansas?
In Kansas, many rural communities have hospitals that are struggling to stay open. Kansans across the state have been saddled with higher premiums and higher co-pays. Many low-income, hard-working Kansans need the security that comes with health insurance. Communities across the state are facing an opioid crisis. Kansans need assurance that they will not lose prescription drug coverage, maternity care coverage and mental health coverage. Expanding Medicaid insurance to cover more low-income Kansans would help address these problems. That’s why I am for it.

My criteria for productive changes to the health care system are simple. We need to control costs, both for individuals and the overall system; we need to stabilize and bring more competition to the health care marketplace; we need more choice for consumers and greater flexibility for individual states to experiment with new ways of providing care; and we need to protect the less fortunate, especially those who are dealing with mental illness, chronic health problems, and drug addiction.

What Is Washington Doing About Health Care?
Congress’ priority should be improving our nation’s private health insurance system so that quality health insurance is available and affordable for every American. As a nation, we need to address the root causes of our ever-increasing healthcare costs. When Washington expanded coverage of Medicaid, they made a commitment to fund 90% of the cost of that expansion. Some in Congress want to renege on that. I think they should keep that promise.

What Can be Done About Voter Security
The ability of each registered person to vote and the integrity of that vote is critical to our democracy. Just look at some of the close elections we have had in this state and across the country.

For the better part of 8 years, our Kansas Secretary of State has administered a multi-state voter identification system. The program goes by the name of CrossCheck and involves 26 other states and a database of an estimated 100 million people. Unfortunately, it has many flaws.

First, people in Kansas have already had their personal data compromised by this program. The names, addresses, dates of birth and last 4 digits of Social Security numbers of 1,400 Kansas voters were accessed by a liberal activist group in Chicago through a simple Freedom of Information request. In addition, several independent companies with expertise in data security have looked at the site and concluded it lacks basic safeguards, that even amateur hackers could get in with little trouble.

Until the site is more secure, the Kansas Secretary of State’s office is no better than Equifax. They promise information on potential voter fraud, but in the process expose Kansans and others to potential financial fraud, including identity theft.

A second problem with CrossCheck is cost. Maintaining and updating an estimated 100 million name database takes time and money. Yet we have little or no information on the overall cost of the CrossCheck program and why Kansas taxpayers are paying for a program that 26 other states get to use for free. Who is responsible for administration of this database in the Secretary of State’s office? Where is the cost information for this activity listed in state budget documents? This is the kind of basic cost and personnel information Kansans should have access to.

While the database is located in Arkansas, the program is administered and supervised by the Kansas Secretary of State’s office. Legally, this potentially puts taxpayers at risk, exposing them to paying for state government’s liability for improper disclosure of information.

Third, the CrossCheck system is not accurate and effective. Because it only uses three pieces of data to identify matches, the system is full of false positives, not double voting. Their own participation guide says just that. State, including Kansas, have to spend money to investigate dual registrations or they will be wrongly removing names from the voter rolls.

In 2012 and 2014, Crosscheck sent Iowa officials information on about 240,000 voter registrations that shared a name and a date of birth with a voter in another state. But under detailed investigation, researchers from four universities found only six names where it appeared the same person was registered and voted in two different states.

Given this ridiculously higher error rate, it is no wonder that Florida, Washington, and Oregon no longer use the program. And other states are actively questioning the systems value. Kansas taxpayers should not be funding a program that is the source of false and misleading data.

What Can We Do to Increase the Number of Tourists in Kansas?
Nationally, tourism is a two trillion dollar industry that supports over fifteen million jobs. Every day, states are competing aggressively for these jobs and dollars. But recently Kansas has not been in the game.

In 2017, the state is spending less on Tourism, Parks and Wildlife than it did five years ago. Our state’s tourism budget is one-third the national average. And we are significantly behind what neighboring states like Colorado, Missouri, and Oklahoma spend.

Small investments in this area can have a large impact. So when it comes to jobs, it is penny wise and pound foolish not to be spending money here. Given the lack of effort by the state, it should come as no surprise that Kansas is missing out on its fair share of tourism jobs, dollars and recognition. Here are some of the unfortunate facts regarding tourism:

Kansas ranked 41st in terms of travel-generated taxes. Kansas ranked 46th as a place to visit, by a Business Insider survey. Kansas ranked 39th as place to take summer road trips. Kansas was rated 43rd for entertainment, recreation and nightlife. None of these surveys tell the full story, but all are out there in the virtual world creating an impression of our state and what we have to offer for visitors. And as recently as 2014, Kansas was ranked near the bottom in terms of social media presence for tourism. So we have not been getting our message out as effectively as we need to. This needs to change.

My five-point program would begin with an inventory of potential attractions and sites in the state, along with the resources currently being allocated to developing and promoting them. Such an inventory would be the first of its kind for Kansas.

Next, would be working on a regional basis with those in the tourism arena, to identify and provide specific assistance tailored to individual activities or sites and designed to produce results. A vigorous marketing program focused on specialized audiences would be a key part of this effort.

Third would be the expansion of current sites and, where beneficial, the connection of certain sites to ones in neighboring states. Examples of this could include the development of Clinton Lake into a U.S. Whitewater National Park and linking the Flint Hills Nature Trail to the Katy Trail in Missouri.

Fourth would be an emphasis on International Tourism. This would include expanding Heritage Travel, those from countries like Britain or Germany looking to explore our state and see where their ancestors migrated, as well as marketing our open spaces to japan and other Asian countries who residents do not get to enjoy or see open space on a scale that America offers.

Finally, would be expanded activity and support from state government. This would involve additional funding for Tourism, Parks and Wildlife, along with providing individualized support for sites like Little Jerusalem in western Kansas soon to be opened to the public by the Nature Conservancy.

Kansas has a lot of offer in terms of recreation, natural beauty, history and entertainment. As governor, I want to help more people learn about our attractions and come here to see and enjoy it.[20]

”
—Barnett for Governor[21]


Republican Party Jeff Colyer

“
  • Tracey and I are going to fight for transparency in government.
  • We are going to fight Planned Parenthood and FOR the right to life.
  • We are going to work with industry partners to train our children for the jobs of tomorrow.
  • We are going to fight to ensure our agriculture producers have the chance to grow their businesses and preserve the family farm.
  • We are going to require work for welfare.
  • We are going to protect the second amendment.
  • We are going to have low taxes and cut regulations.
  • We are going to see education as an investment and not a burden.
  • We are going to LISTEN more than we talk.
  • We are going to get things done while others beat on their chest.
  • And, we are going to ensure that Kansas is a place that our children want to call home.[20]
 ”
—Dr. Jeff Colyer for Governor[22]


Republican Party Kris Kobach

“

Culture of Corruption
Topeka has a culture of corruption. Part of the problem is that some in Topeka have just been there too long. How long? One leader of the opposition party has been there since Gerald Ford was President. Others have merely exchanged their legislative badges for lobbyist badges and are busy cashing in on the offices Kansans entrusted them with. This is wrong. We need term limits for all legislative and statewide elected officials.

Taxation
The legislature just passed a disastrous $1.2 billion tax increase. Topeka does not need more money and Kansas taxpayers do not need to pay higher taxes to feed state government. Kansas does not have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem.

While state spending was increasing, my office reduced its budget from $7 million to $4.7 million. We didn’t do that by cutting services, in fact we took on additional responsibilities. We did this by modernizing our office procedures, utilizing electronic communications, and modeling our office after the private sector.

Once we get our financial house in order we will begin creating new opportunities for our state unlike any we’ve seen to date.

Illegal Immigration
Strong borders are essential to our nation and to our State. They are essential to fighting terrorism, essential to fighting crime, and essential to protecting American workers. And the only way to combat a problem as severe as a lawless immigration system is to have action at both the federal and the state level.

Unfortunately, Kansas has become the sanctuary state of the Midwest. We are the only state in the 5-state area that has done nothing to discourage illegal immigration.

This hurts Kansas taxpayers. This puts Kansans’ jobs at risk. And it puts Kansans’ lives at risk. We can solve this problem in Kansas. But it takes leadership and political will. I’ll get the job done.

Life
As a husband and father of five daughters, I know there is nothing more precious than the life of a child. Thanks to the tireless work of pro-life advocates, Kansas has taken significant steps in recent years to safeguard and protect the lives of the unborn. As Governor, I will do everything in my power to protect, preserve and enhance the culture of life in Kansas. It is of utmost importance to me personally to safeguard innocent human life from conception until natural death.

The 2nd Amendment
I’m a gun owner, a sportsman and an avid hunter. I’m also a husband and father. Self-defense is one of our most basic human rights. Yet anti-gun forces have been working overtime to restrict your right to keep and bear arms. Allowing citizens to protect themselves and their families is a Constitutional right that is bestowed on every American. As Governor, I will fight to safeguard and defend your right to keep and bear arms.[20]

”
—Kansans for Kobach[23]


Republican Party Ethan Randleas

“

Taxes
The government has no right to your money, plain and simple. My administration will look to repeal the State income tax for individuals as well as businesses.

Education
It is no secret that our education system in Kansas is flawed. Rather than continue to recklessly pump money into a broken system, school choice should be opened up to force schools to become efficient. This not only empowers families to choose schools that best suit their own children, but break up the largest standing monopoly in American History, which is the public school system.

Abortion
It is important to understand that we all have a right to Life, and this right extends to those who are unborn. I support any legislation that restricts access to abortions in cases that do not involve rape or the Mother’s life being in danger.

Economic Growth
We must do more to support the small farmers and businesses in Kansas that are struggling to make ends meet. The way to “do more” is to simply do less. Regulate private business less, tax incomes and sales less, be less involved in the decisions of businesses. By letting these businesses be free, a natural form of economic growth will happen as money will be able to freely and easily flow throughout Kansas, bringing prosperity with it.

Government Spending
The government spends too much of hardworking Kansans’ money on things we just simply do not need. I will seek to cut spending anywhere there is a need, assuring that we do not waste the precious dollars of the Kansas taxpayer.

Healthcare
By cutting out the government in the healthcare industry, we will see a new found ease in finding affordable and quality care. It is quite simply not the governments job to be footing the bill for all healthcare needs.

Criminal Justice Reform
Our justice system in the state has become broken. We allow the state to seize assets of individuals simply because they may be connected to crimes, as well as jail our own citizens for putting a substance in their own bodies while hurting no other people. This administration will look to work with the legislature to end civil asset forfeiture when no crime is committed as well as decriminalize all drug use in the state.[20]

”
—Committee to Elect Ethan Randleas[24]


Republican Party Tyler Ruzich

“

Voter Registration
I encourage all eligible voters to register and vote in every election. Participation in the electoral process is critical to the preservation of our nation’s democracy and the future of a strong Kansas. I especially challenge young people to get involved.

School Funding
I want Kansas to be among the top ten states in funding and support for education. I believe we can achieve the sorely needed public school funding through a moderate increase in the corporate tax rate and personal property taxes. The future of Kansas, in large part, depends on our ability to provide our state’s students much needed, overall improvements in our state’s public education institutions.

Taxation
I would support a moderate increase in the corporate tax rate for companies with more than 50 employees, with no tax increase for small businesses, sole proprietorships, S-Corps and LLC’s.

Guns
While I respect the traditions and freedoms of the Second Amendment, I support universal background checks and the repeal of the current law which allows the presence of guns on the campuses of public universities.

Immigration
I believe Kansas should provide a welcoming environment for all who pay taxes, abide by our laws and contribute positively to the life and culture of Kansas. If these expectations are met, I would support a clear pathway to U.S. citizenship.

Agriculture
Water conservation continues to be critical to the economic and environmental viability of our state. I support increased spending for research into the distribution of soil moisture sensors to encourage private farms to transition from spray irrigation to drip systems. Updating these systems could have a positive impact on the Ogallala Aquifer, creating a more stable outlook for agriculture across Kansas.

Equal Rights
I believe Kansas should be a welcoming place to all, regardless of race, religion, sex and LGBTQ+ identification. There is no place for the tolerance of bigotry or inequality in a progressive, prosperous state.

Job Growth
I believe we can improve job growth through equitable taxation of businesses along with fiscal responsibility for state funds for public works. By improving our infrastructure we help ensure our strength in a competitive marketplace.[20]

”
—Ruzich for Governor[25]


Republican Party Ken Selzer

“

Experienced Businessman Who Can Create More Efficient Government
I am a CPA and a businessman, who has proven that you can achieve success in managing an important part of state government using the basic principles that every successful business uses by focusing on customer service and being ever more efficient in its operations!

I was elected 3 years ago to serve as your Kansas Insurance Commissioner. Since then we have calmly and thoughtfully managed our way to more than a 15% reduction in the number of employees and more than a 15% reduction in costs. And all the while we ramped up our focus on the customer, the citizens of Kansas!

Our staff did such a great job of focusing on the customer and in being more and more responsive that an independent outside organization ranked the Kansas Insurance Department the 2nd highest in the nation! We ranked exceptionally high in customer responsiveness, in transparency, our web site, and other important factors.

In short, I've been in state government long enough to prove we can make it work better, but not long enough to accept more politics as usual.[20]

”
—Kansans for Selzer[26]


Campaign finance

Following are campaign finance figures obtained from 2017 yearend reports filed with the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission and containing information on all contributions to or expenditures by the campaigns as of December 31, 2017.[27]

Satellite spending

  • Grow Kansas Action Fund released a negative ad against Colyer in July 2018 saying that he would offer a continuation of the Brownback administration.

Debates and forums

February 17 debate

The first debate of the campaign was held in Wichita on February 17. Gov. Jeff Colyer (R) was unable to attend due to an illness, leaving four candidates participating in the debate:[28]

  • Wink Hartman stated that he would have fired deputy education commissioner Dale Dennis following allegations that the state Department of Education had allocated transportation funding to certain school districts without legal authority to do so: "In my world, that individual probably would be looking for another place of employment."
  • Mark Hutton argued that the Colyer and Brownback administrations had not taken the right approach to adjusting the budget: "So I get asked that question all the time: Does Kansas have a revenue problem or a spending problem? And my answer to that is we probably have a spending problem, but it may not be like you think. It could be that we’re spending way too much in this place and not enough over here...But the reality is we don’t know because nobody in the governor’s office has done the hard work of digging into this budget and figuring out how we’re spending our money."
  • Kris Kobach stated that if elected he would cut all state agencies' budgets by 1 percent per year and would focus on governing alongside the Republican majority in the state Legislature: "Let’s just face it. We’re in a more combative era in American politics, both in Washington, D.C., and Topeka. And the old style where everybody could be happy and shake hands and just laugh all the way is gone. You have to have a fighter."
  • Ken Selzer referred to his tenure as head of the state's Insurance Department, arguing that the department had been transparent under his tenure: "We are an open book in the Insurance Department. We don’t have any pending records requests. We answer them when they come in...We manage our department like we want the state to be managed."

Campaign tactics and strategies

Campaign advertisements

Republican Party Jim Barnett

Support


Republican Party Jeff Colyer

Support
"Two Candidates" - Colyer campaign ad, released July 27, 2018
"Colyer on Education" - Colyer campaign ad, released July 18, 2018

Republican Party Ken Selzer

Support
"CPA for Governor" - Selzer campaign ad, released July 11, 2018

Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods
Race ratings: Kansas gubernatorial election, 2018
Race tracker Race ratings
November 5, 2018 October 30, 2018October 23, 2018October 16, 2018
The Cook Political Report Toss-up Toss-upToss-upToss-up
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales Toss-up Tilt RepublicanTilt RepublicanTilt Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball Toss-up Toss-upLean RepublicanLean Republican
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

Context of the 2018 elections

  • Heading into the 2018 election, the sitting governor was Jeff Colyer, who took office in 2018, after former Gov. Sam Brownback (R) was appointed to a post in Donald Trump's administration.[29]
  • As of the 2018 elections, Kansas was under a Republican trifecta. It had held this status since former Gov. Brownback took office in 2011. Kansas also had a Republican triplex.
  • Kansas was won by the Republican candidate in each of the five previous presidential elections. The widest margin of victory was George W. Bush's 25 percent margin in 2004 while the narrowest was John McCain's 15 percent margin in 2008.
  • Kansas was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election. Click here for more information on other 2018 gubernatorial elections.

Past elections

2014

See also: Kansas gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2014

Sam Brownback ran for re-election as governor of Kansas in the 2014 elections. In the primary election, the ticket of Sam Brownback and Jeff Colyer defeated the ticket of Jennifer Winn and Robin Lais by a 26.4 percent margin.[30]

Governor/Lieutenant Governor of Kansas, Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngSam Brownback/Jeff Colyer Incumbent 63.2% 166,687
Jennifer Winn/Robin Lais 36.8% 96,907
Total Votes 263,594
Election results via Kansas Secretary of State.


Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

There are no Pivot Counties in Kansas. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Kansas with 56.7 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 36.1 percent. In presidential elections between 1864 and 2016, Kansas voted Republican 84.21 percent of the time and Democratic 15.78 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, Kansas voted Republican all five times.[31]

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Kansas. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[32][33]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 29 out of 125 state House districts in Kansas with an average margin of victory of 21.8 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 34 out of 125 state House districts in Kansas with an average margin of victory of 20.9 points. Clinton won six districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 96 out of 125 state House districts in Kansas with an average margin of victory of 32.8 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 91 out of 125 state House districts in Kansas with an average margin of victory of 35.5 points. Trump won 11 districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Kansas governor Republican primary 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Kansas gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018 (August 7 Republican primary) - Google News

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Footnotes

  1. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "Legislature overrides Brownback’s veto of bill that rolls back his 2012 tax cuts," June 6, 2017
  2. ↑ The Wichita Eagle, "School funding still inadequate and unfair, Supreme Court rules," October 2, 2017
  3. ↑ Associated Press, "Candidate chides Kansas governor for not signing tax pledge," June 7, 2018
  4. ↑ KCUR, "Colyer, Kobach Use Pens To Fight Over Kansas School Spending, Taxes," April 17, 2018
  5. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "Kobach tears into Colyer at GOP debate, but Colyer resists urge to 'scream and shout,'" Aprile 13, 2018
  6. ↑ Jeff Colyer for Governor, "Meet Governor Colyer," accessed May 18, 2018
  7. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "With Donald Trump Jr. on hand, hundreds turn out to support Kobach’s run for governor," November 28, 2017
  8. ↑ All about Redistricting, "Who draws the lines?" accessed January 24, 2018
  9. ↑ KOAM TV, "Kansas Governor Wins Endorsement Of Former Primary Rival," April 25, 2018
  10. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "Kobach jumps the gun on anti-abortion group’s endorsement — which also goes to Colyer," accessed June 29, 2018
  11. ↑ The Emporia Gazette, "Longbine endorses Colyer," July 10, 2018
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 The Wichita Eagle, "Wichita mayor, chamber PAC, county commission chair all back Colyer in GOP primary," accessed July 13, 2018
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Lawrence Journal-World, "NRA backs Colyer over Kobach in Kansas race for governor," July 16, 2018
  14. ↑ The Wichita Eagle, "Dole endorses Colyer in GOP primary for Kansas governor," accessed July 31, 2018
  15. ↑ Twitter, "Donald J. Trump," August 6, 2018
  16. ↑ The Wichita Eagle, "Senate president Wagle endorses Kobach in official email. Is it an ethics violation?" July 25, 2018
  17. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "Wichita businessman drops campaign for governor, endorses Kobach," February 21, 2018
  18. ↑ Lawrence Journal-World, Kobach gets help from Trump Jr. in Kansas governor’s race," October 16, 2017
  19. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "Kobach jumps the gun on anti-abortion group’s endorsement — which also goes to Colyer," accessed June 29, 2018
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 20.4 20.5 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  21. ↑ Barnett for Governor, "Ask Jim," accessed March 18, 2018
  22. ↑ Dr. Jeff Colyer for Governor, "Issues," accessed June 22, 2018
  23. ↑ Kobach for Governor, "On The Issues," accessed March 18, 2018
  24. ↑ Ethan Randleas for Governor, "Stances," accessed March 18, 2018
  25. ↑ Ruzich for Governor, "Home," accessed March 18, 2018
  26. ↑ Kansans for Selzer, "Issues," accessed March 18, 2018
  27. ↑ Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, "View Submitted Forms & Reports," accessed February 25, 2018
  28. ↑ The Wichita Eagle, "Kansas governor candidates fight to impress after Colyer drops out of debate," February 17, 2018
  29. ↑ The Kansas City Star, "Gov. Brownback is finally leaving. Now, Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer must pick up the pieces," January 24, 2018
  30. ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2014 Primary Election Official Vote Totals," accessed September 18, 2017
  31. ↑ 270towin.com, "Kansas," accessed June 1, 2017
  32. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  33. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
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