Robert Klingenberg

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Robert Klingenberg

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

August 2, 2022

Personal

Profession

Driver

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Robert Klingenberg (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. Senate to represent Kansas. He lost in the Democratic primary on August 2, 2022.

Klingenberg completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Robert Klingenberg's career experience includes working as a truck driver.

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

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,004,956
= 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.

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
	Submit photo	Mike Andra	12.6	33,464
		Robert Klingenberg	8.0	21,413
		Michael Soetaert	3.6	9,464

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 266,554
= 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 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

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 476,348
= 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.

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)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= 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

To view Klingenberg's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Robert Klingenberg completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Klingenberg's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a working class man looking to return control of the Government to the people. I am a labor advocate, and work with unions whenever I can from striking with them, or offering material support. Our country for too long has been ran by corporate elite and the rich. They have bought and sold legislation and politicians, and it is time for it to end.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Labor Rights - I believe that many of our societies problems are due to lack of a real labor rights package.
• Universal Rights - I believe in a set of universal rights that I believe all people are entitled to. This includes things like healthcare, housing, and debt relief.
• Opposition - I believe our current set of senators, except one, are two sides of the same coin. It is time the people had a real opposition figure in the Senate.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

There isn't one area I am not passionate about. There is no shortage of issues that need addressing. If I were to choose one, I believe strongly that we lack a real opposition in the United States. As we have seen our rights being eroded away, we are allowing a handful of politicians to effectively govern by withholding votes. We have seen a right wing party devolve into fascism, and another party that is asleep at the wheel. The people need a real opposition figure and leaders. As the situation deteriorates on the ground level, people will turn to more and more dangerous ideologies, and we have to be the ones to deliver the message that a better world is possible.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

The rise of fascism. It isn't a secret that everything occurring is going to plan. We only need look back on history to understand how this political ideology plays out. No less than 3 times in history, the moderates sided with the right against the progressive and leftists in their governments, and authoritarian right wing governments took their place.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

I understand why people would want politicians to have term limits. With current events I think the Supreme Court definitely needs some addressing in terms of appointment lengths. But at the same time the people are the ultimate deciders. A solution with more immediate results would be to get money out of politics.

What qualities does the U.S. Senate possess that makes it unique as an institution?

It is a unique institution that only serves the elite. It is considered the higher of the two chambers, and It has historically been used to oppress. The inverse can be true however, with a senator willing to utilize real political leverage it can be used to enact great change.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for senators to have previous experience in government or politics?

I don't think it really matters. We are either for the people or are not. Assuming otherwise I feel is contradictory to our representative democracy.

What do you think of the filibuster?

It is a tool used to oppress the working class. It is time to eliminate the filibuster.

What criteria would you apply when deciding whether to confirm presidential appointees?

I would look at their track records of decisions that affect the working class. For instance, if a supreme court pick sides with corporations over workers majority of the time I do not think I can vote to confirm that in good faith.

If you are not a current senator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

Anything related to government funding, scientific research, or social aspects of our country. I wouldn't mind being on the agricultural committee either as rural investment is a huge part of my platform.

Is there a particular senator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

Bernie Sanders

How would you evaluate a judicial nominee?

There track records against the working class. If they side with the elite powers most of the time, then they do not belong on the Supreme Court .

What kind of relationships would you build with other senators?

I am going to the senate to be an opposition figure. That means utilizing my political power to pass my agenda. This means that they would have to come to me on legislation and where I stand. That means we will no longer prop up the rich with excessive tax cuts, that means we will pass real legislation that will help the American People.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Not anymore. We are living the results of compromising. We are often forced with a lesser of two evils approach to politics. There is no compromising with a person who is diametrically opposed to me. There is no middle ground when it comes to somebody who doesn't believe people of color deserve the same rights. There is no middle ground with someone who believes business should be 100% private. We need to quit allowing the right wing to dictate our battles to us. It is time we go on the offensive, because it has become apparent the right no longer wants to compromise. This is how they get their agenda.

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

Klingenberg's campaign website stated the following:

“	Universal Rights I believe in a set of universal rights. These are rights that every American in the United States should be entitled to. I firmly believe there should be a universal healthcare system that should cover all varieties of healthcare and should not be cost-prohibitive to the lowest earners and the destitute. I believe in universal housing that should be implemented in a variety of ways using multiple policies. We need to give the People relief from being crushed by the current housing industry. We are being bombarded by rising rent costs, higher mortgage rates, and other outrageous costs associated with buying housing. Speculators are scooping up properties across the nation leaving nothing behind for the People. The goal SHOULD be to provide a home for every family. This might include temporary housing for certain situations, such as when abuse victims need a refuge from their abusers or other unforeseen circumstances. I believe in some form of universal income. A universal income could be instrumental in increasing the money in the pockets of the People. This, combined with a system of higher wages, would decrease people’s dependence on other social services like food stamps and state-funded cash assistance. Employers would be required to pay higher wages, and the smaller businesses that can’t afford to pay those wages could be subsidized by government funds. I would like to also implement a system that would subsidize smaller farms so farm workers can also be paid fairly. We should totally have a universal debt relief reformation in our country. Most of our working class citizens have been under assault from various forms of debt. I believe we should provide the largest stimulus in the history of the world to our working class citizens in this country. This giant debt relief would encompass student debt, medical debt, and many other forms of debt. It’s high time we alleviate the lower classes and start building them up so they can enter middle class. The debt systems in the United States are horrible! They need to be completely reformed. Tear it down and start from scratch! I believe in universal voter registration at 18. Combining this with the elimination of the Electoral College and implementation of Ranked Choice Voting, a true democracy could develop in the United States. Gerrymandering is a blight on our history and should be relegated to history as a huge mistake. Political division cannot continue to be sown by allowing bad actors to draw maps that are unfair to the People who live there. Government Controlled by Workers The working class should absolutely be in control of the Government. The working class has been exploited for decades at every level. With rising costs of living, it is important to both make sure workers are being compensated fairly, and tacle corporate greed (the main driver of inflation). This can be accomplished by increasing the minimum wage to a thriving wage. This thriving wage should at least match the purchasing power of what the dollar was during the height of the American working class. To help address the exploitation factor, there should also be a guaranteed slate of benefits to all People, and granted access to, and availability of, more fulfilling jobs. We should be able to work in a constructive labor force. We should be able to work in a labor force that is innovative and restorative in our communities. This kind of jobs program is very possible in the United States. I believe there are two major hurdles to this achievement, though: 1)Right To Work and 2) At Will Employment. These two things are consistently used to take power out of OUR hands and to place that power in the hands of multi-million-dollar corporations. I support Unions which protect what remains of the middle class. We can increase the floor from where they negotiate to improve their ABILITY to negotiate. By propping up Unions, we can give some much-needed, immediate relief to the working class who are tired, broken, and on the brink of destitution due to circumstances they have no control over. Rural Development and Investment Rural areas of the country are left behind in the national discourse and I find that horrific and distasteful and want to put a stop to it. Our country needs to see major rural investment from the perspective of public ownership. The People who live in an area with rural food processing plants should be the owners of those plants. By granting ownership of those plants to the People, financial opportunities can spring up for those underserved communities. We can also diminish, and possibly eliminate, food deserts in Kansas, and the rest of the country, in the same way. I believe in the Family Farm. They are under constant assault by policies designed to make sure large corporations can easily eliminate them. I will pursue policies that invest in and support small farms to make sure they get a fair shake. I also want to create and fund public cooperatives for food transportation. We live in the richest country in the world. Food scarcity must be eliminated. We can take back our farms from speculators and investors, and feed the American People. Defending your rights to self defense We must absolutely protect the right to bear arms. We have seen a massive spike in right- wing terrorism over the past 4 years. I have always been a Second Amendment supporter, but the last four years have really opened my eyes to the importance of it. We have seen major war between two major nations and have seen the effectiveness in having the ability to resist. This doesn’t necessarily happen to us, but we must understand there are groups operating in the US who absolutely support violence against marginalized people. Those groups train every day while awaiting their green light from whomever they believe is in charge. Armed incursions into land owned by trans people, plots to kidnap democratic politicians, plots from extremists to assassinate left-wing activists...this is the unfortunate reality we live in every day. Violence is rooted in socio-economics. Gun violence is a nationwide problem, but we will never solve the problem if we do not understand that by not solving the root problems, gun violence in the US will never be fixed. We need to invest in housing and economic opportunity can help to address these inequalities, and then we can discuss other measures. This would entail creating new jobs that pay a living wage. This would entail housing citizens in houses of THEIR OWN. This would entail providing comprehensive mental health care. This would entail confronting extremism at the sources. This would entail fully funding early education and schools nationwide. I will not support any further restrictions on firearm ownership. The best things to do now in legislature would be to expand background checks and close the gun store loophole. All control is inherently a class-based issue. We cannot increase the barrier of entry to a constitutionally-given right. I believe that the disenfranchised groups have the same access as the affluent. We must work to make gun ownership an apolitical issue. This isn’t a left-right issue. We can no longer afford to hurt themselves politically just to have an issue to campaign on. This is a right granted to all Americans. We must treat it as such. By improving background checks and closing gun show loopholes, which will not impair the ability to own firearms, we should be able to keep more weapons out of the hands of those who shouldn’t have them. (I added the background checks, and gun show loophole after the heinous shooting in Texas. I do not believe these impair the ability to own firearms, but should help to keep weapons out of the hands of those who shouldn’t have them) The Environment We must start taking on the industries that are destroying the planet. A handful of companies are responsible for the vast majority of the pollution. A new set of jobs focused on cleaning up our country needs to be created. We could create a materials-reclamation program. Coupled with a trucking cooperative (something I have advocated for in the past), materials can be hauled away as landfills are cleaned up. Another idea is to collect our organic waste and create a national composting initiative to put a significant amount of the waste in our landfills to good use growing trees and food. I fully support the Green New Deal with some amendments. I do not believe the private industry will ever take the actions necessary to effectively address environmental concerns. We must begin transitioning to publicly-owned energy cooperatives. We should utilize federal power to fund green energy initiatives. We also cannot ignore nuclear power. It is safe and produces a minimal amount of waste. We an also reduce the everyday cost of living for the average consumer because they would only be required to maintain the grid. We must work together with the international community to reduce the carbon emissions in the whole world. We CAN save our planet. We need to understand that the Earth will continue on without us. What we should be doing is figuring out a way to make FUTURE generations of humans not suffer because of our negligence TODAY. Women’s Reproductive Rights I fully support federally codifying women’s right to choose what to do with their bodies. There are no questions, and no apologies. The right to choose is a human right, and does not need to be justified. Any attempts to do so is only an attempt to control our population of women. Education It is time for us to completely rethink our approach to education. I believe it is time t fully fund what I call “life-long learning opportunities.” At any time, should any of us wish to resume or begin our tech school, college, or university education, we should have that ability, and the resources necessary, to do that with no cost to us. Student debt should be eliminated for all of us.	”
—Robert Klingenberg's campaign website (2022)

See also

2022 Elections

What's on the ballot? U.S. Congress U.S. Congress special elections State executives State legislatures State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards Election analysis hub

Government

Who represents me? U.S. Congress State executives State legislators State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards

Newsletters

The Heart of the Primaries The Daily Brew The Weekly Brew The Ballot Bulletin Checks and Balances Economy and Society Hall Pass Number of the Day Robe & Gavel Union Station

External links

Search Google News for this topic

Candidate

U.S. Senate Kansas

Website

Twitter

Instagram

Personal

Facebook

Footnotes

[show]

Kansas' current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Roger Marshall (R)

Jerry Moran (R)

Representatives

District 1

Tracey Mann (R)

District 2

Derek Schmidt (R)

District 3

Sharice Davids (D)

District 4

Ron Estes (R)

Republican Party (5)

Democratic Party (1)