A prominent state senator has joined the race for Kansas governor. Jim McLean, with the Kansas News Service, has more.
(AP version)
The, already crowded, race for Kansas governor now has its first female candidate. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that State Senator Laura Kelly filed paperwork this (FRI) morning to create an exploratory committee and begin collecting contributions to finance her campaign for the Democratic Party’s nomination for governor. 67-year-old Kelly will be jumping into a race which already has 20 candidates in the running. The Topeka senator says her campaign will target Democrats and moderate Republicans who have expressed displeasure with the conduct of the state’s conservative politicians. Kelly says she will focus on balancing the state’s budget, early childhood education, public pensions and health care issues. Kelly is the first woman in the field. Three other prominent Democrats are already in the race: former state Representative Josh Svaty, current state Representative Jim Ward and former Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer. Republican candidates include Secretary of State Kris Kobach, Lieutenant Governor Jeff Colyer and Insurance Commissioner Ken Selzer. Johnson County businessman Greg Orman recently launched a gubernatorial campaign as an independent.
