Kansas will keep a Democrat in the governor’s office. The win keeps the office in Democratic hands for at least four more years.
Democratic state Sen. Cindy Holscher defeated Republican Ty Masterson, the president of the Kansas Senate, in the race to succeed Gov. Laura Kelly. She will become the next leader of a state that has long leaned Republican in federal races.
How close was Cindy Holscher’s win?
The Associated Press called the race for Holscher. As of Nov. 13 at 2:32 p.m. WAT, with an estimated 98% of votes counted, AP’s count showed Holscher with 552,076 votes, or 50.3%, and Masterson with 544,791 votes, or 49.7%. Those numbers may have changed since then.
The race was tight to the end. Polls in the final days showed the two candidates within 2 percentage points, with Masterson holding a slight edge, and some forecasts favored him.
Masterson, from Andover, has led the Kansas Senate since 2021 and pushed tax cuts and limits on the governor’s powers.
What did Cindy Holscher campaign on?
Cindy Holscher ran on increasing public school funding, lowering property taxes and expanding Medicaid. Holscher, a state senator from Johnson County, has served in the Legislature since 2017.
Kansas is one of the few states that have not expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Kelly pushed for expansion for years but could not get it through the Republican Legislature.
Expansion would extend coverage to more low income adults, a change supporters say would help working families and rural hospitals. Opponents have raised concerns about long term costs to the state.
Where did the candidates agree?
Despite their party differences, both candidates proposed property tax relief for homeowners and spoke often about affordability. Property taxes have climbed for many Kansas homeowners as home values rose.
Both also promised to improve Kansas schools, attract businesses and create jobs.
The overlap reflected how pocketbook issues dominated the race, as voters across the state wrestled with rising costs. Grocery prices, housing and health care costs were common concerns on the campaign trail.
Why does Cindy Holscher’s win stand out?
Kansas has voted Republican in presidential elections for decades. The last Democrat to carry the state was Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. Republicans have long held both of the state’s U.S. Senate seats.
Kansas voters have also shown independent streaks, rejecting a 2022 ballot measure that would have removed abortion protections from the state constitution.
But the governor’s office has been more competitive. Kelly won in 2018 and again in 2022, and Cindy Holscher’s victory extends that run. Before Kelly, Democrat Kathleen Sebelius served two terms as governor from 2003 to 2011.
Kelly could not seek a third term because of term limits. Kansas limits governors to two consecutive terms.
The result fits a broader pattern of Democratic gains in this year’s midterms. Democrats also flipped several Senate seats and gained ground in the House, according to reports.
What challenges will Cindy Holscher face?
Holscher will likely face a Republican controlled Legislature, which has overridden Kelly’s vetoes on a number of issues.
That could make Medicaid expansion and major school funding increases difficult without bipartisan support. Education funding has been a long running fight in Kansas, including court battles over whether schools were adequately funded.
Property tax relief, which both parties backed, may offer the clearest path to early compromise. Both candidates said lowering costs for families would be a priority.
Cindy Holscher is set to take office in January. Masterson remains a member of the state Senate, setting up a working relationship between the two former rivals.
