Kansas House of Representatives elections, 2018
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 16
- Early voting: Oct. 17 - Nov. 5
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: Photo ID required
- Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
| 2018 Kansas House elections | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Primary | August 7, 2018 |
| General | November 6, 2018 |
| Past election results |
| 2016・2014・2012・2010・2008 2006・2004・2002・2000 |
| 2018 elections | |
|---|---|
| Choose a chamber below: | |
Republicans held their supermajority in the 2018 elections for Kansas House of Representatives, winning 85 seats to Democrats' 40. All 125 House seats were up for election. At the time of the election, Republicans held 85 seats to Democrats' 40.
Republicans lost trifecta control of the state. At the time of the 2018 election, Kansas was a Republican trifecta, controlling both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office. In 2018, state Sen. Laura Kelly (D) defeated state Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R) in the gubernatorial election.
The Kansas House of Representatives was one of 87 state legislative chambers with elections in 2018. There are 99 chambers throughout the country. In 2017, three chambers in Virginia and New Jersey were up for election. In 2016, 86 out of 99 legislative chambers held elections. Prior to 2018, the Kansas House of Representatives last held elections in 2016.
Ballotpedia identified the August 7, 2018, Republican primaries as battleground primaries.
For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
For more information about the Republican primary, click here.
Post-election analysis
- See also: State legislative elections, 2018
The Republican Party maintained supermajority status in both chambers of the Kansas State Legislature following the 2018 election. The state Senate did not hold regular elections. The Kansas House of Representatives held elections for all 125 seats. The Republican supermajority in the House of Representatives was maintained at 85-40. Seven Republican incumbents were defeated in the primary. Eight incumbents were defeated in the general election; five Democrats and three Republicans.
National background
On November 6, 2018, 87 of the nation's 99 state legislative chambers held regularly scheduled elections for 6,073 of 7,383 total seats, meaning that nearly 82 percent of all state legislative seats were up for election.
- Entering the 2018 election, Democrats held 42.6 percent, Republicans held 56.8 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.6 percent of the seats up for regular election.
- Following the 2018 election, Democrats held 47.3 percent, Republicans held 52.3 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.4 percent of the seats up for regular election.
- A total of 469 incumbents were defeated over the course of the election cycle, with roughly one-third of them defeated in the primary.
Want more information?
- Incumbents defeated in 2018's state legislative elections
- 2018 election analysis: Partisan balance of state legislative chambers
- 2018 election analysis: Number of state legislators by party
- 2018 election analysis: State legislative supermajorities
Candidates
General election candidates
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Kansas House of Representatives General Election 2018
- Incumbents are marked with an (i) after their name.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
Office Other District 1
Michael Houser (i)
District 2 Adam Lusker (i)
District 3
District 4
District 5 District 6
District 7
District 8 District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13 District 14 District 15 District 16
District 17
Michael Kerner (Libertarian Party)
District 18
District 19 District 20
District 21
District 22
District 23 Linda Gallagher (i)
District 24
District 25 Melissa Rooker (i)
District 26 District 27 District 28 District 29
Robert Firestone (Libertarian Party)
District 30 District 31
District 32
District 33
Jason Conley (Libertarian Party)
District 34
District 35 District 36 District 37
District 38
District 39 District 40 Debbie Deere (i)
District 41
District 42
District 43
District 44
District 45 District 46 District 47
District 48 Abraham Rafie (i)
District 49 District 50
District 51
District 52
District 53
District 54
District 55
District 56
District 57
District 58
District 59
District 60
District 61
District 62
District 63
District 64 District 65
District 66
Edgar Chambers (Libertarian Party)
District 67
District 68
District 69
District 70
District 71
District 72
District 73
District 74 District 75 District 76
District 77
District 78
District 79 Ed Trimmer (i)
District 80 District 81
District 82
District 83
District 84
District 85
District 86
District 87 District 88
District 89
District 90
District 91
David Loomis (Libertarian Party)
District 92
District 93 District 94
District 95
District 96
District 97 District 98 Steven Crum (i)
District 99
District 100
District 101
District 102
District 103
District 104 District 105
District 106 District 107 Bryan Bombardier (Libertarian Party)
District 108 District 109 District 110
District 111 Eber Phelps (i)
District 112
District 113
District 114
District 115
District 116
District 117
District 118
District 119
District 120
District 121
District 122
District 123
District 124 District 125
Primary candidates
The following list of candidates was compiled on June 5, 2018, based on information from the Kansas Secretary of State.[1]
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Kansas House of Representatives Primary Elections 2018
- Incumbents are marked with an (i) after their name.
Office Other District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5 District 6 District 7
District 8 District 9
District 10
District 11 District 12 District 13 District 14 District 15 District 16
District 17
Jim Eschrich
District 18 District 19 District 20
District 21
District 22 District 23
District 24
District 25
District 26 District 27 District 28 District 29
District 30 District 31
District 32
District 33
District 34
District 35 District 36 District 37
District 38
Noel Hull
District 39 District 40 District 41
District 42 District 43
District 44
District 45 District 46 District 47
District 48
District 49 District 50
District 51
District 52
District 53
District 54
District 55 District 56
District 57
District 58
District 59 District 60
District 61
District 62
District 63
District 64 District 65
District 66
District 67
District 68
District 69
District 70
District 71
District 72
District 73
District 74 District 75 District 76
District 77
District 78
District 79
District 80 District 81
District 82
District 83
District 84
District 85
District 86 District 87 District 88
District 89 District 90
District 91
District 92
District 93 District 94
District 95
District 96
District 97 District 98
District 99
District 100 District 101
District 102
District 103
District 104 District 105
District 106 District 107 District 108 District 109 District 110
District 111
District 112
District 113 District 114
District 115
District 116
District 117
District 118
District 119
District 120
District 121
District 122
District 123
District 124 District 125
Incumbents retiring
Thirteen incumbents did not run for re-election in 2018.[2] Those incumbents were:
| Name | Party | Current Office |
|---|---|---|
| Kevin Jones |  Republican |
House District 5 |
| Keith Esau | Republican |
House District 14 |
| Erin Davis | Republican |
House District 15 |
| Frank Trimboli | Republican |
House District 26 |
| Randy Powell | Republican |
House District 30 |
| Shelee Brim | Republican |
House District 39 |
| Thomas Sloan | Republican |
House District 45 |
| Scott Schwab | Republican |
House District 49 |
| Susie Swanson | Republican |
House District 64 |
| Roger Elliott | Republican |
House District 87 |
| Leslie Osterman | Republican |
House District 97 |
| Clay Aurand | Republican |
House District 106 |
| J. Stephen Alford | Republican |
House District 124 |
Margins of victory
A margin of victory (MOV) analysis for the 2018 Kansas House of Representatives races is presented in this section. MOV represents the percentage of total votes that separated the winner and the second-place finisher. For example, if the winner of a race received 47 percent of the vote and the second-place finisher received 45 percent of the vote, the MOV is 2 percent.
The table below presents the following figures for each party:
- Elections won
- Elections won by less than 10 percentage points
- Elections won without opposition
- Average margin of victory[3]
| Kansas House of Representatives: 2018 Margin of Victory Analysis | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Elections won | Elections won by less than 10% | Unopposed elections | Average margin of victory[3] |
| Democratic |
||||
| Republican |
||||
 Other |
||||
| Total | ||||
The margin of victory in each race is presented below. The list is sorted from the closest MOV to the largest (including unopposed races).
Seats flipped
The below map displays each seat in the Kansas House of Representatives which changed partisan hands as a result of the 2018 elections, shaded according to the partisan affiliation of the winner in 2018. Hover over a shaded district for more information.
| State legislative seats flipped in 2018, Kansas House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| District | Incumbent | 2018 winner | Direction of flip |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 111 | Eber Phelps |
Barbara Wasinger |
D to R |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 2 | Adam Lusker |
Kenneth Collins |
D to R |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 23 | Linda Gallagher |
Susan Ruiz |
R to D |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 25 | Melissa Rooker |
Rui Xu |
R to D |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 30 | Randy Powell |
Brandon Woodard |
R to D |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 40 | Debbie Deere |
David French |
D to R |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 45 | Thomas Sloan |
Mike Amyx |
R to D |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 48 | Abraham Rafie |
David Benson |
R to D |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 79 | Ed Trimmer |
Cheryl Helmer |
D to R |
| Kansas House of Representatives District 98 | Steven Crum |
Ron Howard |
D to R |
Process to become a candidate
For party candidates
See statutes: Kansas Statutes, Chapter 25, Article 2, Section 5
A candidate seeking the nomination of a party qualified to participate in primary elections can access the primary ballot either by filing a nomination petition or paying a filing fee.
By filing a nomination petition
Signature requirements for nomination petitions for party candidates vary according to the office being sought. For offices elected on a statewide basis, signatures must equal at least 1 percent of the state's current voter registration total of the party whose nomination the candidate is seeking. For offices elected by district, signatures must equal at least 2 percent of the district's current voter registration total of the party whose nomination the candidate is seeking.[4][5]
Nomination petitions for federal and state-level offices (including state legislative seats) must be submitted to the Kansas Secretary of State by noon on June 1, prior to the primary election. If June 1 falls on a holiday or weekend, petitions are due by noon on the next following business day.[4]
By paying a filing fee
A candidate may forgo the petition process by submitting a declaration of candidacy and paying a filing fee. The filing fee varies according to the office being sought. For statewide and federal offices, the fee is equal to 1 percent of the office's annual salary. For state senate candidates, the fee is $75. For state representative candidates, the fee is $50.[4][6]
The declaration and accompanying filing fee for federal and state-level offices (including state legislative seats) must be submitted to the Kansas Secretary of State by noon on June 1, prior to the primary election. If June 1 falls on a holiday or weekend, petitions are due by noon on the next following business day.[4]
In addition to the statutory filing fee, a candidate for federal and state offices must pay a $20 administrative fee to the Kansas Secretary of State. A state-level candidate must also pay a registration fee to the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission. For statewide executive offices, the fee is $480. For state legislative candidates, the fee is $35.[7][8]
For independent candidates
See statutes: Kansas Statutes, Chapter 25, Article 3, Section 3
Independent candidates must petition for access to the general election ballot. Signature requirements vary according to the office being sought. For any statewide office, at least 5,000 signatures must be collected. For district-level offices (such as congressional or state legislative seats), signatures must equal at least 4 percent of the current total of qualified voters in the district as determined by the Kansas Secretary of State.[9]
While an independent candidate is not liable for a statutory filing fee, he or she must still pay a $20 administrative fee to the Kansas Secretary of State. State-level candidates must also pay a registration fee to the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission. For statewide executive offices, the fee is $480. For state legislative candidates, the fee is $35.[7][8]
Independent nomination petitions for federal and state-level offices (including state legislative seats) must be submitted to the Kansas Secretary of State by noon on the Monday preceding the date of the primary election.[10]
For write-in candidates
See statutes: Kansas Statutes, Chapter 25, Article 3, Section 3
In order to have their votes tallied, certain write-in candidates must submit affidavits of candidacy. If a write-in candidate is running for governor, an affidavit must be filed with the Kansas Secretary of State by noon on the second Monday preceding the general election. If a write-in candidate is seeking another statewide office (except United States Senator), an affidavit must be filed with the Kansas Secretary of State by noon on the second Monday preceding the election at which the write-in candidate seeks nomination or election. Write-in candidates for other federal and state offices are not required to file affidavits.[7][10]
Qualifications
Section 4 of Article 2 of the Kansas Constitution states, "During the time that any person is a candidate for nomination or election to the legislature and during the term of each legislator, such candidate or legislator shall be and remain a qualified elector who resides in his or her district."
Salaries and per diem
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2024[11] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $86.66/session day | $166/day |
When sworn in
Kansas legislators assume office the second Monday of January after their election.[12]
August 7 Republican primaries
Ballotpedia identified the August 7, 2018 Republican primaries as battleground primaries. For more on the Republican primaries, click here. For more on the Democratic primaries, click here.
Debate between supporters and opponents of former Gov. Sam Brownback's (R) 2012 tax cuts made the August 7 legislative primaries a battle between rival Republican factions. Twenty-three of the 31 contested primaries featured contests between pro-Brownback supporters of the cuts and anti-Brownback opponents. All 125 state House seats are up; the next state Senate elections were scheduled for 2020.
In 2018, 19 incumbents faced primary challengers, while 14 chose not to seek reelection. Twelve of the 19 who faced challengers generally opposed Brownback's tax cuts, five mostly supported them, and two did not firmly belong to either faction. Of the 14 who retired, seven were pro-Brownback, six were anti-Brownback, and one did not belong to either faction.
Six of the 12 anti-Brownback incumbents lost their primaries. One pro-Brownback incumbent lost his primary.
Anti-Brownback candidates won six of the 12 open primaries. Pro-Brownback candidates won five.[13]
This was not the first time the Brownback tax cuts—which lowered income tax rates and exempted more than 300,000 businesses from taxation—have been an issue in the Republican primaries. Eighteen legislators opposed to Brownback's policies were defeated in 2012. Fourteen incumbents supportive of Brownback were unseated in 2016.
In the 2017 legislative session, the Kansas State Legislature largely repealed the tax cuts and overrode Brownback when he vetoed the repeal. Anti-Brownback Republicans said the repeal was necessary to address the budget deficit and increase education funding. Read more below.
The state legislative elections occurred alongside a Republican gubernatorial primary to select Brownback’s successor. He resigned in January 2018 to take a position in the Trump administration and was replaced by Lieutenant Gov. Jeff Colyer.[14] Colyer and Secretary of State Kris Kobach, the leading candidates in the Republican primary, both indicated support for lowering taxes.[15]
The chart below shows the number of members in each faction heading into the primaries.
| Kansas Republican factions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faction | Pre-primary members | Retirements | Incumbents with challenges | Post-primary members | ||||||||
| Anti-Brownback | 41 | 6 | 12 | 33 | ||||||||
| Pro-Brownback | 38 | 7 | 5 | 43 | ||||||||
| No clear faction | 6 | 1 | 2 | 9 | ||||||||
| Total | 85 | 14 | 19 | 85 | ||||||||
The chart below shows the factional affiliations of the candidates running in the 31 contested Republican primaries. For more on the methodology we used, click here.
| Factional conflicts in Kansas state House Republican primaries | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Incumbent | Incumbent faction | Incumbent running? | Challenger(s) | Challenger(s) faction | |||||||
| District 5 | Kevin Jones | Pro-Brownback | No | |||||||||
Mark Samsel  |
Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Renee Slinkard | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 6 | Jene Vickrey
|
Pro-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Clifford Blackmore | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 8 | Patty Markley | Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Chris Croft |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 11 | Jim Kelly
|
Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| John Lowrance | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 12 | Doug Blex
|
Pro-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Brad Hall | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| District 13 | Larry Paul Hibbard
|
Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Londa Tindle | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 14 | Keith Esau | Pro-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Charlotte Esau |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Aaron Young | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Tom Stanion | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 17 | Tom Cox
|
Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Jim Eschrich | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| District 18 | Cindy Neighbor | Democratic | Democratic seat (Yes) | |||||||||
| Cathy Gordon | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| Eric Jenkins |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 27 | Sean Tarwater Sr.
|
Unclear faction | Yes | |||||||||
| Rochelle Bird | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Karen Snyder | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 28 | Joy Koesten | Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Kellie Warren |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 29 | Brett Parker | Democratic | Democratic seat (Yes) | |||||||||
| Peggy Galvin |
Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| James Todd | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 30 | Randy Powell | Pro-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Wendy Bingesser |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Colleen Webster | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 38 | Willie Dove
|
Pro-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Noel Hull | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| District 39 | Shelee Brim | Anti-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Kristy Acree | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Owen Donohoe |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 42 | Jim Karleskint
|
Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Lance Neelly | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 45 | Thomas Sloan | Anti-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Cynthia Smith |
Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Ronald Thacker | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 49 | Scott Schwab | Pro-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Fsehazion Desalegn | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Megan Lynn |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 59 | Blaine Finch
|
Unclear faction | Yes | |||||||||
| Shari Weber | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| District 64 | Susie Swanson | Anti-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Susan Carlson |
Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| Kathy Martin | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 74 | Don Schroeder | Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Stephen Owens |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 75 | Mary Martha Good | Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Will Carpenter |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 80 | Anita Judd-Jenkins | Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Bill Rhiley |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 87 | Roger Elliott | Anti-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Renee Erickson |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Jeff Kennedy | Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 93 | John Whitmer | Pro-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| J.C. Moore |
Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 97 | Leslie Osterman | Pro-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Nick Hoheisel |
Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
| Michael Walker | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| District 100 | Daniel Hawkins
|
Pro-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| James Breitenbach | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| District 104 | Steven R. Becker | Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Paul Waggoner |
Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 107 | Susan Concannon
|
Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Sam Sacco | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 113 | Greg Lewis
|
Anti-Brownback | Yes | |||||||||
| Brett Fairchild | Pro-Brownback | |||||||||||
| District 124 | J. Stephen Alford | Anti-Brownback | No | |||||||||
| Jeffrey Locke | Unclear faction | |||||||||||
| Martin Long |
Anti-Brownback | |||||||||||
Kansas political history
Party control
2018
In the 2018 elections, there was no change in the partisan balance of the Kansas House of Representatives.
| Kansas House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 6, 2018 | After November 7, 2018 | |
| Democratic Party | 40 | 40 | |
| Republican Party | 85 | 85 | |
| Total | 125 | 125 | |
2016
In the 2016 elections, Republicans lost 12 seats in the Kansas House of Representatives but still maintained their majority.
| Kansas House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
| Democratic Party | 28 | 40 | |
| Republican Party | 97 | 85 | |
| Total | 125 | 125 | |
Trifectas
A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government. Republicans in Kansas gained a state government trifecta as a result of the 2010 elections. They defended their trifecta in the 2012, 2014, and 2016 elections. Republicans previously held a trifecta from 1995 to 2002.
Kansas Party Control: 1992-2024
No Democratic trifectas • Sixteen years of Republican trifectas
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Senate | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Wave election analysis
- See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)
The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?
Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.
Applying this definition to state legislative elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose 494 seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.
The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 10 state legislative waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.
| State legislative wave elections | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | President | Party | Election type | State legislative seats change | Elections analyzed[16] | |
| 1932 | Hoover | R | Presidential | -1,022 | 7,365 | |
| 1922 | Harding | R | First midterm | -907 | 6,907 | |
| 1966 | Johnson | D | First midterm[17] | -782 | 7,561 | |
| 1938 | Roosevelt | D | Second midterm | -769 | 7,179 | |
| 1958 | Eisenhower | R | Second midterm | -702 | 7,627 | |
| 2010 | Obama | D | First midterm | -702 | 7,306 | |
| 1974 | Ford | R | Second midterm[18] | -695 | 7,481 | |
| 1920 | Wilson | D | Presidential | -654 | 6,835 | |
| 1930 | Hoover | R | Presidential | -640 | 7,361 | |
| 1954 | Eisenhower | R | First midterm | -494 | 7,513 | |
Competitiveness
Every year, Ballotpedia uses official candidate lists from each state to examine the competitiveness of every state legislative race in the country. Nationally, there has been a steady decline in electoral competitiveness since 2010. Most notable is that the number of districts with general election competition has dropped by more than 10 percent.
Results from 2016
Click here to read the full study »
Historical context
Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.
Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.
Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.
Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.
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.[19]
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.[20][21]
| 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. |
| 2016 presidential results by state House district | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Obama | Romney | 2012 Margin | Clinton | Trump | 2016 Margin | Party Control |
| 1 | 34.52% | 63.35% | R+28.8 | 23.35% | 71.63% | R+48.3 | R |
| 2 | 39.77% | 57.53% | R+17.8 | 27.77% | 66.50% | R+38.7 | D |
| 3 | 46.36% | 51.22% | R+4.9 | 38.05% | 54.82% | R+16.8 | D |
| 4 | 30.10% | 67.41% | R+37.3 | 20.25% | 74.79% | R+54.5 | R |
| 5 | 32.25% | 65.27% | R+33 | 23.45% | 69.48% | R+46 | R |
| 6 | 29.97% | 68.18% | R+38.2 | 26.18% | 67.84% | R+41.7 | R |
| 7 | 37.56% | 60.32% | R+22.8 | 27.74% | 66.71% | R+39 | R |
| 8 | 29.85% | 68.98% | R+39.1 | 39.07% | 55.47% | R+16.4 | R |
| 9 | 34.83% | 62.80% | R+28 | 26.84% | 66.79% | R+39.9 | R |
| 10 | 56.98% | 40.00% | D+17 | 56.46% | 35.14% | D+21.3 | D |
| 11 | 30.79% | 66.61% | R+35.8 | 24.48% | 70.05% | R+45.6 | R |
| 12 | 22.13% | 75.66% | R+53.5 | 16.45% | 78.95% | R+62.5 | R |
| 13 | 22.55% | 75.21% | R+52.7 | 16.51% | 77.88% | R+61.4 | R |
| 14 | 35.33% | 63.12% | R+27.8 | 40.81% | 52.23% | R+11.4 | R |
| 15 | 41.90% | 55.57% | R+13.7 | 42.04% | 48.78% | R+6.7 | R |
| 16 | 42.20% | 56.14% | R+13.9 | 47.32% | 45.91% | D+1.4 | D |
| 17 | 41.27% | 56.85% | R+15.6 | 47.24% | 45.90% | D+1.3 | R |
| 18 | 43.81% | 54.18% | R+10.4 | 45.07% | 47.41% | R+2.3 | D |
| 19 | 44.88% | 53.47% | R+8.6 | 53.76% | 39.96% | D+13.8 | R |
| 20 | 37.95% | 60.61% | R+22.7 | 48.15% | 46.37% | D+1.8 | R |
| 21 | 50.02% | 48.02% | D+2 | 57.77% | 35.71% | D+22.1 | D |
| 22 | 52.33% | 44.57% | D+7.8 | 52.46% | 38.89% | D+13.6 | D |
| 23 | 49.29% | 48.38% | D+0.9 | 51.80% | 40.42% | D+11.4 | R |
| 24 | 53.41% | 43.84% | D+9.6 | 54.71% | 37.19% | D+17.5 | D |
| 25 | 50.47% | 47.54% | D+2.9 | 59.32% | 33.38% | D+25.9 | R |
| 26 | 32.80% | 65.25% | R+32.4 | 33.61% | 58.71% | R+25.1 | R |
| 27 | 29.93% | 68.57% | R+38.6 | 36.38% | 57.73% | R+21.4 | R |
| 28 | 31.83% | 66.95% | R+35.1 | 42.47% | 52.42% | R+9.9 | R |
| 29 | 44.53% | 53.59% | R+9.1 | 49.08% | 44.00% | D+5.1 | D |
| 30 | 43.67% | 54.04% | R+10.4 | 47.90% | 44.60% | D+3.3 | R |
| 31 | 68.34% | 29.12% | D+39.2 | 64.49% | 28.46% | D+36 | D |
| 32 | 70.85% | 26.33% | D+44.5 | 69.13% | 24.93% | D+44.2 | D |
| 33 | 53.07% | 44.74% | D+8.3 | 46.77% | 46.81% | R+0 | D |
| 34 | 87.52% | 11.61% | D+75.9 | 82.15% | 14.18% | D+68 | D |
| 35 | 83.97% | 14.71% | D+69.3 | 79.07% | 17.21% | D+61.9 | D |
| 36 | 57.58% | 41.19% | D+16.4 | 54.32% | 40.28% | D+14 | D |
| 37 | 60.83% | 36.66% | D+24.2 | 53.70% | 39.94% | D+13.8 | D |
| 38 | 34.73% | 63.29% | R+28.6 | 30.42% | 63.22% | R+32.8 | R |
| 39 | 35.39% | 62.94% | R+27.5 | 39.04% | 53.11% | R+14.1 | R |
| 40 | 40.75% | 57.27% | R+16.5 | 38.32% | 53.56% | R+15.2 | D |
| 41 | 46.66% | 50.70% | R+4 | 39.81% | 50.78% | R+11 | D |
| 42 | 36.18% | 61.14% | R+25 | 31.04% | 61.02% | R+30 | R |
| 43 | 34.15% | 63.16% | R+29 | 31.41% | 59.98% | R+28.6 | R |
| 44 | 62.77% | 34.89% | D+27.9 | 67.49% | 25.53% | D+42 | D |
| 45 | 54.91% | 42.82% | D+12.1 | 59.16% | 33.32% | D+25.8 | R |
| 46 | 77.64% | 19.20% | D+58.4 | 76.44% | 14.71% | D+61.7 | D |
| 47 | 38.18% | 59.43% | R+21.3 | 31.44% | 61.94% | R+30.5 | R |
| 48 | 36.29% | 62.51% | R+26.2 | 45.15% | 48.99% | R+3.8 | R |
| 49 | 38.40% | 59.65% | R+21.3 | 42.61% | 49.98% | R+7.4 | R |
| 50 | 37.85% | 59.91% | R+22.1 | 32.39% | 60.99% | R+28.6 | R |
| 51 | 28.55% | 68.80% | R+40.3 | 24.87% | 67.57% | R+42.7 | R |
| 52 | 38.48% | 59.83% | R+21.4 | 41.24% | 52.33% | R+11.1 | R |
| 53 | 49.46% | 48.55% | D+0.9 | 48.48% | 44.69% | D+3.8 | D |
| 54 | 36.08% | 61.42% | R+25.3 | 31.53% | 61.19% | R+29.7 | R |
| 55 | 58.75% | 38.23% | D+20.5 | 56.22% | 35.86% | D+20.4 | D |
| 56 | 50.35% | 47.61% | D+2.7 | 47.52% | 45.37% | D+2.1 | D |
| 57 | 60.24% | 37.08% | D+23.2 | 52.56% | 40.10% | D+12.5 | D |
| 58 | 68.89% | 28.89% | D+40 | 62.81% | 30.95% | D+31.9 | D |
| 59 | 34.91% | 62.26% | R+27.3 | 27.17% | 65.34% | R+38.2 | R |
| 60 | 44.81% | 52.89% | R+8.1 | 41.23% | 50.34% | R+9.1 | R |
| 61 | 28.37% | 68.24% | R+39.9 | 21.25% | 72.95% | R+51.7 | R |
| 62 | 23.43% | 74.47% | R+51 | 17.38% | 77.05% | R+59.7 | R |
| 63 | 35.08% | 62.22% | R+27.1 | 26.76% | 66.59% | R+39.8 | R |
| 64 | 25.27% | 72.77% | R+47.5 | 20.43% | 73.29% | R+52.9 | R |
| 65 | 43.74% | 54.05% | R+10.3 | 34.93% | 58.47% | R+23.5 | R |
| 66 | 50.12% | 46.43% | D+3.7 | 51.05% | 38.79% | D+12.3 | D |
| 67 | 40.06% | 57.80% | R+17.7 | 42.63% | 49.20% | R+6.6 | R |
| 68 | 34.43% | 63.50% | R+29.1 | 29.68% | 63.68% | R+34 | R |
| 69 | 35.59% | 61.03% | R+25.4 | 30.21% | 60.42% | R+30.2 | R |
| 70 | 23.84% | 73.94% | R+50.1 | 19.14% | 74.53% | R+55.4 | R |
| 71 | 32.78% | 64.93% | R+32.1 | 30.30% | 61.66% | R+31.4 | R |
| 72 | 40.72% | 57.33% | R+16.6 | 36.99% | 55.92% | R+18.9 | D |
| 73 | 26.35% | 71.50% | R+45.2 | 22.73% | 70.59% | R+47.9 | R |
| 74 | 29.70% | 67.81% | R+38.1 | 26.47% | 66.27% | R+39.8 | R |
| 75 | 30.67% | 66.90% | R+36.2 | 24.51% | 69.40% | R+44.9 | R |
| 76 | 30.91% | 66.27% | R+35.4 | 24.82% | 68.60% | R+43.8 | R |
| 77 | 27.21% | 70.71% | R+43.5 | 22.92% | 70.69% | R+47.8 | R |
| 78 | 34.61% | 63.40% | R+28.8 | 38.30% | 53.87% | R+15.6 | R |
| 79 | 32.96% | 65.00% | R+32 | 28.05% | 65.25% | R+37.2 | D |
| 80 | 35.06% | 62.13% | R+27.1 | 26.70% | 67.44% | R+40.7 | R |
| 81 | 33.84% | 63.99% | R+30.2 | 31.03% | 61.27% | R+30.2 | R |
| 82 | 30.06% | 67.52% | R+37.5 | 26.99% | 65.38% | R+38.4 | R |
| 83 | 54.37% | 43.11% | D+11.3 | 51.85% | 39.65% | D+12.2 | D |
| 84 | 70.84% | 26.86% | D+44 | 68.69% | 24.53% | D+44.2 | D |
| 85 | 34.31% | 63.97% | R+29.7 | 37.32% | 56.24% | R+18.9 | R |
| 86 | 53.12% | 43.21% | D+9.9 | 48.15% | 43.40% | D+4.7 | D |
| 87 | 37.57% | 60.74% | R+23.2 | 40.94% | 52.41% | R+11.5 | R |
| 88 | 49.69% | 48.03% | D+1.7 | 47.67% | 44.31% | D+3.4 | D |
| 89 | 61.51% | 37.13% | D+24.4 | 59.18% | 34.73% | D+24.4 | D |
| 90 | 24.03% | 73.80% | R+49.8 | 22.19% | 71.68% | R+49.5 | R |
| 91 | 30.91% | 66.80% | R+35.9 | 29.71% | 63.58% | R+33.9 | R |
| 92 | 50.33% | 46.78% | D+3.5 | 49.74% | 42.40% | D+7.3 | D |
| 93 | 27.30% | 70.28% | R+43 | 21.81% | 71.39% | R+49.6 | R |
| 94 | 29.42% | 68.69% | R+39.3 | 29.97% | 63.69% | R+33.7 | R |
| 95 | 47.49% | 49.01% | R+1.5 | 43.07% | 48.91% | R+5.8 | D |
| 96 | 46.56% | 50.44% | R+3.9 | 39.83% | 52.31% | R+12.5 | D |
| 97 | 36.12% | 61.26% | R+25.1 | 30.50% | 61.72% | R+31.2 | R |
| 98 | 40.62% | 56.26% | R+15.6 | 33.41% | 58.84% | R+25.4 | D |
| 99 | 26.09% | 72.26% | R+46.2 | 28.46% | 64.66% | R+36.2 | R |
| 100 | 31.22% | 66.92% | R+35.7 | 31.69% | 61.73% | R+30 | R |
| 101 | 23.17% | 75.00% | R+51.8 | 21.32% | 72.49% | R+51.2 | R |
| 102 | 44.74% | 51.67% | R+6.9 | 36.80% | 53.97% | R+17.2 | D |
| 103 | 64.24% | 33.10% | D+31.1 | 59.09% | 33.27% | D+25.8 | D |
| 104 | 31.01% | 67.13% | R+36.1 | 29.17% | 64.11% | R+34.9 | R |
| 105 | 37.77% | 59.32% | R+21.5 | 36.00% | 56.30% | R+20.3 | R |
| 106 | 23.27% | 74.50% | R+51.2 | 18.06% | 76.25% | R+58.2 | R |
| 107 | 21.11% | 76.29% | R+55.2 | 16.89% | 77.37% | R+60.5 | R |
| 108 | 28.23% | 68.87% | R+40.6 | 24.51% | 68.39% | R+43.9 | R |
| 109 | 18.44% | 79.59% | R+61.2 | 14.04% | 81.00% | R+67 | R |
| 110 | 17.45% | 80.37% | R+62.9 | 13.13% | 82.19% | R+69.1 | R |
| 111 | 26.84% | 71.10% | R+44.3 | 24.33% | 69.49% | R+45.2 | D |
| 112 | 23.09% | 75.31% | R+52.2 | 19.09% | 75.85% | R+56.8 | R |
| 113 | 24.26% | 73.83% | R+49.6 | 18.44% | 76.06% | R+57.6 | R |
| 114 | 26.19% | 71.17% | R+45 | 20.18% | 73.85% | R+53.7 | R |
| 115 | 19.36% | 78.60% | R+59.2 | 15.93% | 78.96% | R+63 | R |
| 116 | 24.38% | 73.12% | R+48.7 | 16.94% | 76.79% | R+59.8 | R |
| 117 | 20.29% | 78.08% | R+57.8 | 15.14% | 79.76% | R+64.6 | R |
| 118 | 14.70% | 83.44% | R+68.7 | 11.38% | 84.39% | R+73 | R |
| 119 | 35.54% | 62.75% | R+27.2 | 33.22% | 61.23% | R+28 | R |
| 120 | 17.37% | 80.09% | R+62.7 | 12.51% | 82.46% | R+70 | R |
| 121 | 34.73% | 63.15% | R+28.4 | 37.99% | 54.71% | R+16.7 | R |
| 122 | 21.80% | 76.17% | R+54.4 | 20.40% | 74.49% | R+54.1 | R |
| 123 | 32.30% | 65.78% | R+33.5 | 35.21% | 58.47% | R+23.3 | R |
| 124 | 16.22% | 82.22% | R+66 | 15.64% | 79.80% | R+64.2 | R |
| 125 | 29.14% | 69.53% | R+40.4 | 32.81% | 62.26% | R+29.4 | R |
| Total | 38.08% | 59.72% | R+21.6 | 36.28% | 57.01% | R+20.7 | - |
| Source: Daily Kos | |||||||
See also
- Kansas House of Representatives
- Kansas State Legislature
- State legislative elections, 2018
- Kansas state legislative Democratic primaries, 2018
- Kansas state legislative Republican primaries, 2018
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "Candidates for the 2018 Primary (unofficial)," accessed June 4, 2018
- ↑ Ballotpedia defines an incumbent as retiring if the incumbent did not file for office or filed for office but withdrew, was disqualified, or otherwise left a race in a manner other than losing the primary, primary runoff, or convention. If an incumbent runs as a write-in candidate, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring. If an incumbent runs in the same chamber for a different seat, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Excludes unopposed elections
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Kansas Statutes, "Chapter 25, Article 2, Section 5," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Statutes, "Chapter 25, Article 40, Section 5," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Statutes, "Chapter 25, Article 2, Section 6," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Kansas Election Standards, "Chapter IV. - Candidates," revised April 1, 2012
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, "Campaign Finance Handbook for Candidates and Treasurers, 2014," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Statutes, "Chapter 25, Article 3, Section 3," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Kansas Statutes, "Chapter 25, Article 3, Section 5," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
- ↑ Kansas Constitution, "Article Two, Section 2", accessed February 9, 2021
- ↑ New York Times, "Kansas election results," accessed August 7, 2018
- ↑ Washington Examiner, "Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback will resign Jan. 31 to become Trump's religious freedom ambassador," January 25, 2018
- ↑ Associated Press, "Candidate chides Kansas governor for not signing tax pledge," June 7, 2018
- ↑ The number of state legislative seats available for analysis varied, with as many as 7,795 and as few as 6,835.
- ↑ Lyndon Johnson's (D) first term began in November 1963 after the death of President John F. Kennedy (D), who was first elected in 1960. Before Johnson had his first midterm in 1966, he was re-elected president in 1964.
- ↑ Gerald Ford's (R) first term began in August 1974 following the resignation of President Richard Nixon (R), who was first elected in 1968 and was re-elected in 1972. Because Ford only served for two full months before facing the electorate, this election is classified as Nixon's second midterm.
- ↑ 270towin.com, "Kansas," accessed June 1, 2017
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
