Mark R. Holland (Kansas)
Mark R. Holland (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. Senate to represent Kansas. He lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Holland completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Mark R. Holland's career experience includes working as a pastor. Holland served as a mayor.[1][2]
Elections
2022
See also: United States Senate election in Kansas, 2022
General election
General election for U.S. Senate Kansas
Incumbent Jerry Moran defeated Mark R. Holland and David Graham in the general election for U.S. Senate Kansas on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jerry Moran (R) | 60.0 | 602,976 |
 | Mark R. Holland (D)  | 37.0 | 372,214 | |
 | David Graham (L) | 3.0 | 29,766 | |
| Total votes: 1,004,956 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Kansas
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Kansas on August 2, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mark R. Holland | 38.1 | 101,429 |
 | Paul Buskirk | 20.2 | 53,750 | |
 | Patrick Wiesner | 17.6 | 47,034 | |
| Mike Andra | 12.6 | 33,464 | ||
 | Robert Klingenberg | 8.0 | 21,413 | |
 | Michael Soetaert | 3.6 | 9,464 | |
| Total votes: 266,554 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. Senate Kansas
Incumbent Jerry Moran defeated Joan Farr in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Kansas on August 2, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jerry Moran | 80.5 | 383,332 |
 | Joan Farr | 19.5 | 93,016 | |
| Total votes: 476,348 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Libertarian convention
Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Kansas
David Graham advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Kansas on April 23, 2022.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | David Graham (L) |
| ||||
| = 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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Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Mark R. Holland completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Holland's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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My family has always been committed to service. My father, a pastor, taught me the value of serving people, especially those in need. My mother, a teacher, taught me the value of public education and using our gifts to improve our community.
After seminary, I served two churches in rural Kansas and then for 19 years was the senior pastor at Trinity United Methodist in Kansas City, Kansas. In 2018, I co-founded Mainstream UMC, a global campaign to advocate for the ordination and marriage of the LGBTQ+ community within the church.
As Mayor, I advocated for expanding access to healthcare and urged then Governor Brownback to expand Medicaid and to improve health outcomes for residents. I championed better and easier access to green spaces and he encouraged new industries and businesses to move to Kansas City, Kansas. During my tenure, the city and county expanded its economy and dropped the unemployment rate.
- I am running for the U.S. Senate to protect our democracy from attacks by extremists, to break through the culture war, and bring common sense problem solving to issues that are paralyzing our country. Our current Senator, Jerry Moran, lacks this courage. During Moran’s 20 years in Washington, he has aided and abetted a political environment that has gone from divided to dysfunctional to a deadly takeover of the Capitol.
- The rights and access for abortion healthcare, as were previously interpreted under Roe v. Wade, should be enshrined into federal statutory law. I support a filibuster carve-out which will allow for passage of the legislation through the U.S. Senate with 51 votes. I believe this is an issue of separation of church and state and as a faith leader I will always speak out and fight for these rights.
- The Supreme Court has announced that they have agreed to hear Moore v. Harper, which will determine if state courts should be able to overturn congressional voting maps drawn by the state legislatures, no matter how egregious the gerrymandering. Additionally, the Court has agreed to hear Merrill v. Milligan, which challenges the validity of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. These two cases can fundamentally alter our modern understanding of democracy. The protection and expansion of federal voting rights is a top priority and I will work with any Senator who shares my belief that our democracy hangs in the balance and must be protected.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will invest in Kansas roads and bridges, clean water, public transportation, and high speed internet, while creating good-paying jobs for Kansans.
Quality public education should be available to every child in Kansas. Early childhood education along with public schools and colleges, are the backbone of economic development, attracting businesses and spurring community growth.
We must give healthcare robust support. Access to affordable healthcare is a human right, not a privilege. Too many hospitals have closed, leaving Kansans in small towns and large cities at risk.
We must protect an individual’s right to make their own decisions about reproductive health.
We owe our children a livable planet. Kansas is already a leader in wind energy and we must continue to expand renewable energies. Transitioning to them will create new jobs, expand the economy, and help with climate change.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Holland's campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
The Economy The economy drives America and Kansas. As mayor I oversaw $2.8 billion in private investment that created over 12,000 new jobs in Wyandotte County. We grew the economy by looking forward to new industries and opportunities. I support the US infrastructure bills so Kansans can work with dignity to support themselves and their families. Smart federal spending grows the public sector, not the government.
The public schools in Kansas are the backbone of our local economic development and are key to community growth and attracting and retaining families and businesses. Our public schools must prepare our kids for meaningful vocational work and/or college. Every child should have access to a quality education.
Healthcare is a human right, not a privilege. We must provide affordable healthcare to every person and every community. Too many rural and urban hospitals have closed, while politicians play a pointless culture war instead of expanding Medicaid. There have also been too many irresponsible conspiracy theories about this global pandemic and vaccines that risk setting our country back 100 years in public health and wellbeing.
Every person has a right to decide if and when they have children. Access to affordable birth control is essential in every community. We need to defend the right of every woman to have autonomy over her body and make a decision about abortion. This basic human right should not be regulated by the government. We must especially stand up against inhumane abortion restrictions that offer no exceptions for rape, incest, and a woman’s health.
Working for the environment is a win/win for the planet and the people. Emerging environmental industries offer new jobs and better long-term sustainability. We need to stop the culture war between liberals and conservatives and work together for a new, more sustainable economy that gives us the energy and resources we need. It is a false narrative that we must choose between a vibrant economy and a livable planet. America deserves both!
We need leaders who tell the truth about our elections. Our votes are counted at the grass-roots level by honest Kansans and Americans. There is no widespread fraud in the Kansas or American voting systems. Lies and conspiracy theories about elections undermine our democracy. We also need to stand up to gerrymandering, whether we are in a red or a blue state. We need to increase access for every citizen to cast a legitimate ballot.
We live in the greatest state, in the greatest nation in the world. We need to teach honest history about how far we have come and where we still fall short. Only with the truth can we heal broken relationships and build a more just nation. The Kansas and America I love are always celebrating who we are AND working to do better.
Power must be returned to the American people. Citizens United allows untraceable dark money allows the few to control our politics and inflame a lose/lose culture war, thereby preventing Congress from crafting meaningful legislation. We must require organizations that spend money on elections to disclose their donor information. This applies to shell corporations that are currently being used to hide donor identities. Ads on social media and TVs should provide its funders so the American people know who's trying to convince them to vote a certain way. Reforming campaign finance is the main way to restore our democracy. I support federal action to end gerrymandering by creating an independent commission for redistricting. I will advocate for legislation to overturn the Supreme Court ruling for ‘Citizens United’ that is flooding our elections with dark money.
Passing punitive laws is a shallow and unsuccessful way to address America’s social issues. We must stop criminalizing mental health, abortion, addiction, and gender identity. These laws only succeed in furthering cultural division and filling up our prisons. We must work together to craft meaningful policy that unites our country and helps those most in need.[3] |
” |
| —Mark R. Holland's campaign website (2022)[4] | ||
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Rev. Mark Holland for Kansas, "Meet Mark," accessed July 28, 2022
- ↑ KCUR, "Former Kansas City, Kansas, Mayor Mark Holland is making a bid for the U.S. Senate," October 1, 2021
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Rev. Mark Holland for Kansas, “Issues,” accessed July 27, 2022
