Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire kansas, why such wonky politics??

I think of kansas as mostly farmlands and quite a few rural areas. Over the years its seems like we see some really wonky politics out of kansas. you guys often elect a grandmotherly type women as a governor that I can't imagine getting elected in others states. kathleen sebilius and now laura kelly. This laura kelly is a light weight I have a tuff time imagining her getting elected to even a spot on a city council around here. With this ruling on religious freedoms that is frankly insane I just don't get it. What is the dynamic in kansas that makes this happen? are there a bunch of old retired people on social security voting in these people? why isn't kansas more of a conservative state?

Farmers.

Serious Bible Belt mostly...

A few years back they had removed or at least tried to remove evolution from the school system, and replaced it with Creationism... that made national news.

Then we had a bunch of “defund schools”... but not the rich ones, only the poor ones funding got yanked - nice.

Pretty much just a pissing match across the board.

if you ask yourself ( what part of my individual rights have not been attacked by some form of a government body , you will answer your own question ) but that is jmho

Three reasons. Kc/Law., Topeka, Wichita.

^^^^^^^^^^^ This. Population centers rule the state.

Yes, yes....it is the (((population centers))) that are the problem.

so when I think of kansas I think rural and farms. so maybe that is bad because not many people live there. kinda like iowa. but I still think kansas is wonky in its politics.

JL has it pegged right. 90% of our state is pretty conservative but the few big cities ruin it for the rest of us. On an upbeat note we are very gun friendly.

Kansas is pretty conservative Several counties in the north east part of the state elect the liberals.
Kansas is 200 miles by 400 miles and 90% of the population lives in the eastern 150 miles.
Last election for governor was Kelley vs Kobach. Kobach creates lots of controversy and the media dislikes him.
The legislature is mostly republican but less hard right as in the past.
Wagle, started the challenge of the governor exe order and Wagle is also campaigning for Robert's senate seat.
Still, Kelly trampled civil and religious freedom rights.
Copes will stop you for some driving infraction but only then remind you of "stay home".
The last I looked about 50% of Kansas counties had no Virus issues.

What he said.

My wife and I and our two young daughters spent four years in Manhattan, KS. I enjoyed a lot of good hunting and fishing, and we made some good friends for life.

If I had to go back and live there, I wouldn't hesitate at all.

But, I would buy a snow blower, this time!

Sad....aint it?

Think southern democrats without the civil rights issues of the 60's.

That's a whole lot of Kansas folk.

Plenty of civil rights & race issues in Kansas.
Quantrill's raid on Lawrence allegedly became the slavery spark to jump start the War between the states.
Guess some never heard of Brown vs Board of Education. Kicked off school integration in the 50's.
They have the school building as a National park in Topeka.
Most Kansas just want to live and let live though.
Interesting side note about Quantrill's raid is that Lawrence folks were unarmed.
All firearms were locked in the court hose basement.

I'm gonna make a post about it, but in summary, by gosh you nailed it. Last time Kansas voted for a fooking Democrat in the Presidential was when LBJ scammed them.

Bleeding Kansas. Kansas was Indian Country in the most basic sense, until the decade leading up to the WBTS, when it was settled. It was settled first by mainly the natural routes with people from Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky and Virginia...not hardcore Yankee states. Then the Free Staters came mainly to settle for political reasons as opposed to the natural desire to move west for free land and less government intrusion. So many violent and unstable liberals (Yankees from the northeast) came in to force Kansas into the Union as a "Free" state, that by 1857 the tide had turned against nominal southerners and by 1858 if you were "sound on the goose" you'd better stay inside at night and keep your doors bolted and guns loaded, lest you get shot taking a whiz off the front porch. The schizoid and often violent nature of these politics is reflected to the present day. The early towns of Kansas were not mixed much but were southern or northern in nature, southern towns being the earliest, such as Westport, Atchison, Fort Scott and northern towns being Lawrence, Topeka, Mound City, etc. After the war, many Yankees lost interest and drifted off, southerners who'd fled to Missouri and points east and south came back and cattle driven up from Texas didn't all get eaten but some were hazed off and made into herds in Kansas. So the northern vs. southern thing remains to this day.

It is worth noting that Kansas is a very conservative state voting-wise having been one of the biggest voting bases against Obama in both his Presidential runs. At the same time, Kansas does have a history of electing Democrat Governors from time to time.

Laura Kelly is probably a result of Sam Brownback and the already noted fact that few people liked her opposition, Kris Kobach. Brownback was initially liked very well and did do some good things, but he quickly dissolved his regime into chronyism and deceit. Kobach was seen as corrupt and very narrowly got the nomination. A Democrat in Kansas, by and large is probably preferable to a lot of New York Republicans. We had a very pro-gun Democrat as our state representative. I voted for the Republican and the guy was successful in ousting the Democrat. FWIW I held my nose and voted for Kobach over Kelly too. Sebelius was much less "grandmotherly" than Kelly.

Overall Kansas is a lot more conservative than Missouri or Arkansas, Colorado or Nebraska and at least as much as Oklahoma, especially if you equate conservatism with voting Republican. I'd say the state legislature is at or close to as hardcore Republican as its ever been and probably way more conservative than it has ever been. I don't equate being a Republican with being a Conservative, let alone a freedom lover.

In Obama's 2012 run, only two counties, the one where Lawrence is and the one where Kansas City, Kansas is, voted Obama. In the prior election those counties and Crawford, another usual Democrat stronghold, voted for the Kenyan.

Very well done E

There is still a pissing match going over school funding.

And the new Mayer of KC is a hoot.

Missouri is liberal?

THE H O R R O R !!!