The 2018 Kansas gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the next

Governor of Kansas A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

. Democratic nominee

Laura Kelly Laura Jeanne Kelly (born January 24, 1950)"Laura Kelly,"
''Kansapedia,''

won the election, defeating

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nominee

Kris Kobach Kris William Kobach ( ; born March 26, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician who is the Attorney General of Kansas. He previously served as the 31st Secretary of State of Kansas. A former Chairman of the Kansas Republican Party, Kobach came ...

and independent candidate

Greg Orman Gregory John Orman (born December 2, 1968) is an American politician, businessman, and entrepreneur. He ran as an independent to represent Kansas in the United States Senate in the 2014 election, earning 42.5 percent of the vote and losing to i ...

. Incumbent Republican Governor

Sam Brownback Samuel Dale Brownback (born September 12, 1956) is an American attorney, politician, diplomat, and member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party who served as the United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Fr ...

was term-limited and could not seek reelection to a third consecutive term. On July 26, 2017, Brownback was nominated by President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

to serve as

United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom The United States ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom is the ambassador-at-large who heads the Office of International Religious Freedom in the U.S. Department of State. The position was created by the International Religi ...

. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on January 24, 2018. Brownback resigned the governorship on January 31 and was succeeded by Lieutenant Governor

Jeff Colyer Jeffrey William Colyer (born June 3, 1960) is an American surgeon and politician who served as the 47th governor of Kansas from January 31, 2018, to January 14, 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 49th lieutenant governor of Kansa ...

. Colyer was eligible to seek a full term and announced his candidacy prior to becoming Governor of Kansas. In the August 7 primary, Colyer ran against CPA and incumbent Insurance Commissioner

Ken Selzer Ken Selzer (born April 25, 1953) is an American politician who served as the Kansas Insurance Commissioner from 2015 to 2019. He ran for Governor of Kansas A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ran ...

, Topeka doctor and 2006 Republican Kansas gubernatorial nominee Jim Barnett, and

Kansas Secretary of State The secretary of state of Kansas is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Kansas. The current secretary of state is the former speaker ''pro tempore'' of the Kansas House of Representatives, Scott Schwab, who was sworn in on Ja ...

Kris Kobach. On August 7, 2018, Kobach defeated Colyer in the Republican gubernatorial primary by an initial margin of 191 votes, a lead that increased to 361 votes by August 14, although discrepancies in some counties needed resolution and provisional and absentee ballots may not have been counted in some counties. Colyer conceded the Republican nomination after the final votes were tallied, in which Kobach's margin grew slightly. Democratic State Senator Laura Kelly easily won the Democratic nomination. Businessman Greg Orman, who finished second as an independent in the 2014 U.S. Senate race against incumbent Republican

Pat Roberts Charles Patrick Roberts (born April 20, 1936) is a retired American politician and journalist who served as a United States senator from Kansas from 1997 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Roberts served 8 terms in the U.S. House of Re ...

, also ran for governor as an independent candidate. Given that Kansas is the only state which has no gubernatorial statutory qualifications whatsoever in its

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

, seven teenagers, including one who has never even been to the state of Kansas, ran for the office in this election cycle. A debate took place on September 5 between the three candidates that consistently polled above 5%. Polls in late August had Laura Kelly and Kris Kobach running close with Greg Orman polling in the single digits. Kelly's win continued a streak of party turnover for Governor of Kansas, as Kansas has not elected two consecutive governors of the same party since Republican William Avery succeeded fellow Republican John Anderson Jr. following the 1964 election, and neither major party has held the governorship for longer than eight consecutive years since Republican John McCuish left office in 1957.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominated

Secretary of State of Kansas The secretary of state of Kansas is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Kansas. The current secretary of state is the former speaker ''pro tempore'' of the Kansas House of Representatives, Scott Schwab, who was sworn in on J ...

and nominee for KS-03 in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

** Running mate:

Wink Hartman A wink is a facial expression made by briefly closing one eye. A wink is an informal mode of non-verbal communication usually signaling shared hidden knowledge or intent. However, it is ambiguous by itself and highly dependent upon additional ...

, businessman and candidate for KS-04 in 2010

Eliminated in primary

* Jim Barnett, former state senator, nominee for governor in

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

and candidate for KS-01 in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

** Running mate: Rosemary Hansen, Barnett's wife *

, incumbent Governor and candidate for KS-03 in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

** Running mate:

Tracey Mann Tracey Robert Mann (born December 17, 1976) is an American businessman and politician who has served as the U.S. representative from Kansas's 1st congressional district since 2021. The district, popularly known as "the Big First," includes par ...

, incumbent Lieutenant Governor * Patrick Kucera, businessman ** Running Mate: Patricia Reitz * Tyler Ruzich, high school student ** Running mate: Dominic Scavuzzo, high school student *

Kansas Insurance Commissioner The Kansas Insurance Commissioner (KIC), in full the Kansas State Insurance Commissioner, has the primary responsibility to the people whose personal lives are protected by insurance in the state of Kansas. It is an elected position and is curr ...

** Running mate: Jen Sanderson, businesswoman * Joseph Tutera Jr., high school student ** Running mate: Phillip Clemente, high school student

Withdrew

, businessman and candidate for KS-04 in

(ran for lieutenant governor) Hartman joined Kris Kobach's campaign as his Lieutenant Gubernatorial candidate.

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominated

Laura Kelly Laura Jeanne Kelly (born January 24, 1950)"Laura Kelly,"
''Kansapedia,''

, state senator ** Running mate:

Lynn Rogers Lynn Leroy Rogers (born 1939) is an American biologist who studies wild black bears and is known as the ''Jane Goodall of bears''. He is the founder of the North American Bear Center. He teaches a yearly black bear field study course for the W ...

, state senator

Eliminated in primary

* Arden Andersen, physician ** Running mate: Dale Cowsert, businessman * Jack Bergeson, high school student ** Running mate: Alexander Cline, high school student * Carl Brewer, former

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Wichita ** Running mate: Chris Morrow, former mayor of Gardner * Josh Svaty, former Kansas Secretary of Agriculture and former state representative ** Running mate: Katrina Gier Lewison, Manhattan-Ogden USD 383 Board of Education member, veteran

Withdrew

* Jim Ward, Minority Leader of the

Kansas House of Representatives The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of 125 state representatives from districts with roughly equal populations of at least 19,000, its members are responsible for craftin ...

Declined

* Paul Davis, former Minority Leader of the

and nominee for governor in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

(running for

KS-02 Kansas' 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Kansas that covers most of the eastern part of the state, except for the core of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The district encompasses less than a quarter ...

)

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Independent candidates

Candidates

On the ballot

*Rick Kloos **Running mate: Nathaniel Kloos, son of Rick Kloos *

, businessman and candidate for the U.S. Senate in

**Running mate: John Doll, state senator

Write-in

* Aaron Coleman, college student

Failed to qualify

* Ilan Cohen, high school student from Maryland * Max Correa, college student from North Carolina * Joe Larry Hunter, former inmate * Andy Maskin, New York City Advertiser **Running mate: Scott Goodwin, Connecticut Advertiser * Victor Redko, McGill University student * Jared Rogers, University of Pennsylvania student * Nicholas Schrieber, college student from Delaware **Running mate: Matthew Ueckermann, college student from Maryland * Conner Shelton, college student from Pennsylvania

Libertarian convention

Candidates

Nominated

* Jeff Caldwell, executive committee member for the Libertarian Party of Kansas **Running mate: Mary Gerlt

Withdrew

* Thomas Padgett

General election

Predictions

Debates

Endorsements

Polling

;with Kris Kobach and Laura Kelly ;with Kris Kobach and Greg Orman ;with Jeff Colyer ;with generic Republican, Democrat, and Independent

Results

By congressional district

Kelly won 2 of 4 congressional districts, including one that was carried by a Republican in the concurrent congressional elections.

Maps

File:Kansas gubernatorial election, 2018 (Orman).svg, Support for Orman by county:

References

External links

Candidates
at

Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected officials in si ...

Candidates
at

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

;Debates
GOP Primary Debate, February 17, 2018
;Official campaign websites
Jeff Caldwell (L) for GovernorIlan Cohen (I) for Governor

ArchiveAaron Coleman (I) for Governor

ArchiveLaura Kelly (D) for GovernorRick Kloos (I) for GovernorKris Kobach (R) for Governor

Greg Orman (I) for Governor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kansas gubernatorial election, 2018

Gubernatorial A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political_regions, political region, ranking under the Head of State, head of state and in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

2018 United States gubernatorial elections