State News - The Morning Sun

Kansas state Sen. Dennis Pyle, I-Hiawatha, answers questions from reporters after submitting petitions with nearly 8,900 signatures to the Kansas secretary of state's office, Monday, Aug. 1, 2022, in Topeka, Kan. Pyle is trying to get on the November ballot as a candidate for governor. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

Kansas GOP uses texts to hinder independent's governor bid

The Kansas Republican Party has tried to undercut a state lawmaker’s independent candidacy for governor. It sent texts Thursday to people who signed state Sen. Dennis Pyle's petitions for the … more

By JOHN HANNA | 8/4/22

Allie Utley, left, and Jae Moyer, center, of Overland Park, react during a primary watch party Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022, at the Overland Park (Kan.) Convention Center. Kansas voters on Tuesday protected the right to get an abortion in their state, rejecting a measure that would have allowed their Republican-controlled Legislature to tighten abortion restrictions or ban it outright. (Tammy Ljungblad/The Kansas City Star via AP)

Will abortion be on more state ballots after Kansas vote?

Abortion rights opponents were shocked and abortion advocates energized by a decisive statewide vote in heavily Republican Kansas this week in favor of protecting abortion access. Yet that's not … more

By JOHN HANNA and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH | 8/4/22

FILE - In this photo from Thursday, July 14, 2022, a sign in a yard in Merriam, Kansas, urges voters to oppose a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to allow legislators to further restrict or ban abortion. The day before Kansas voters rejected a ballot question that could have eroded abortion rights, many reported receiving anonymous text messages with misleading information about the vote. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

Dirty tricks in Kansas via text: Does yes actually mean no?

The day before Kansas voters rejected a ballot question that could have eroded abortion rights, many people in the state reported receiving anonymous text messages with misleading information about … more

By DAVID KLEPPER and SOPHIA TULP | 8/4/22

Election results: Larger Crawford County communities voted ‘no’ on abortion question

Since the draft of the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade first leaked in early May, and even more so since the ruling became official in late June, Kansas has been in the national spotlight as the first state scheduled to vote on a ballot question about abortion rights. more

By Jonathan Riley / [email protected] | 8/4/22

Hostess Brands Rewards Every Bakery, Warehouse Employee with Surprise 'Thank You' Bonus

Company recognizes employees' commitment to excellence, continued flexibility with bonuses up to $1,000LENEXA, Kan., Aug. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Hostess Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ: TWNK) today announced … more

8/3/22

President Joe Biden speaks virtually from the Indian Treaty Room on the White House complex in Washington, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, on securing access to reproductive and other health during the first meeting of the interagency Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access. Vice President Kamala Harris, third from right, and other administration officials listen. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Abortion vote in Kansas sparks new hope for Dems in midterms

Democrats are celebrating a stunning victory for abortion rights in Republican stronghold Kansas as proof that the issue could turn back a Republican wave this fall. Republicans — and some … more

By STEVE PEOPLES | 8/3/22

FILE - Kansas state Rep. Aaron Coleman, D-Kansas City, is seen at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan., Dec. 8, 2020. Two Kansas state lawmakers who have faced legal troubles since they were elected, including Coleman, lost their primary races, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022. Coleman has been ensnared in controversy since running for election in 2020. He agreed in March to undergo mental health counseling and a domestic violence assessment to avoid prosecution on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge involving his brother. (AP Photo/John Hanna, File)

2 Kansas state lawmakers who faced legal issues ousted

Two Kansas state lawmakers who have faced legal troubles since they were elected have lost their primary races. Freshman Rep. Aaron Coleman, of Turner, who was reprimanded by his party over his legal … more

By MARGARET STAFFORD | 8/3/22

Kansas vote for abortion rights highlights disconnect between majority opinion on abortion laws and restrictive state laws being passed after Supreme Court decision

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)Matthew A Baum, Harvard Kennedy School; Alauna Safarpour, Harvard Kennedy School, and … more

Matthew A Baum | 8/3/22

Voters go to the polls in primary election

Both locally and across the state, voters went to the polls Tuesday to make their voices heard in a variety of party primary races, as well as on the Value Them Both Amendment question regarding abortion. more

By Jonathan Riley / [email protected] | 8/3/22

Voters went to the polls Tuesday to participate in the Kansas Primary Election. Memorial Auditorium in Pittsburg was one of many locations for residents to vote.

Crawford County residents weigh in on Value Them Both

Throughout Tuesday morning, afternoon and evening, residents packed area voting booths to cast their ballots for their top picks in Kansas' primary election. more

By Aaron Pyle / [email protected] | 8/3/22

Former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens delivers a concession speech in his bid for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate during a watch party at the close of Missouri's primary election, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022, in Chesterfield, Mo. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Takeaways: Abortion backlash in Kansas, Greitens' collapse

In one of the biggest days of this year's primary campaign season, red-state Kansas rejected a measure that would have made it easier to restrict abortion, and voters in Missouri repudiated a … more

By BRIAN SLODYSKO | 8/2/22

Jeff Colyer, former Republican Kansas governor, left, speaks at a Value Them Both campaign event at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church's Guadalupe Hall on Saturday.

Abortion amendment supporters, opponents host final campaign events

With the primary election scheduled for Tuesday, activists campaigning both for and against the Value Them Both Amendment were busy this weekend with last-minute organizing efforts ahead of election day. more

By Jonathan Riley / [email protected] | 8/2/22

Mark Finchem, a Republican candidate for Arizona Secretary of State, waves to the crowd as he arrives to speak at a Save America rally Friday, July 22, 2022, in Prescott, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Latest primaries feature deniers for state election posts

Republican primary voters in Arizona and Kansas on Tuesday are deciding whether to elevate loyalists to former President Donald Trump who support his false claims that he lost the 2020 election and … more

By BOB CHRISTIE | 8/2/22

Jessica Porter, communications chair for the Shawnee County, Kansas, Democratic Party, discusses a sign in Spanish urging voters to oppose a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to allow legislators to further restrict or ban abortion, Friday, July 15, 2022, in Topeka, Kansas. The proposed amendment is a response to a 2019 Kansas Supreme Court decision protecting abortion rights. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

Kansas first state to vote on abortion since Roe’s demise

Kansas is having the first test of voters’ feelings since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. Its voters were deciding Tuesday whether to allow state lawmakers to further restrict or … more

By JOHN HANNA and MARGARET STAFFORD | 8/1/22

FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2021, file photo, former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, right, follows a rally against COVID-19 vaccine mandates with his oldest daughter, 15-year-old Reagan, left, outside the Kansas Statehouse in Topeka, Kan. Kobach is running for Kansas attorney general. (AP Photo/John Hanna, File)

Kobach looks for comeback in Kansas attorney general primary

Immigration hardliner Kris Kobach is attempting a political comeback Tuesday in the Republican primary for Kansas attorney general. He faces state Sen. Kellie Warren and former federal prosecutor … more

By JOHN HANNA and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH | 8/1/22

GOP headache: Kansas poised for independent bid for governor

A hard-right Kansas lawmaker who’s clashed with Republican leaders is poised to win a spot on the November ballot as an independent candidate for governor with help from allies of Democratic … more

By JOHN HANNA | 8/1/22

Kansas Residents Can Play Critical Role in Protecting Local Communities by Scheduling Immunizations

LENEXA, Kan., Aug. 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- As children head back to school, parents and caregivers should not overlook routine vaccinations against serious infections, such as measles, mumps, … more

8/1/22

FILE - Former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens gestures while speaking to reporters in Jefferson City Feb. 22, 2022. Greitens resigned as Missouri governor amid criminal charges and legislative investigations, is accused of abuse and bullying by his ex-wife and ran a widely condemned ad suggesting he was hunting members of his own party with a gun. And the Republican is still a leading contender for election to the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb File)

What to watch in primaries in Arizona, Michigan, elsewhere

Primary elections are behind held in six states on Tuesday. In Missouri, scandal-ridden former Gov. Eric Greitens is attempting a political comeback in his campaign for U.S. Senate. In Michigan, a … more

By MEG KINNARD | 8/1/22

Kansas man arrested after 2 fatal shootings, police chase

A 51-year-old Kansas man was arrested Sunday morning in connection with two fatal overnight shootings in Lawrence after fleeing from police and firing on officers during the chase. Lawrence Police … more

7/31/22

FILE - Ben Kennedy, left, and Alyssa Winters, left, wait at a door to speak with prospective voters about a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution that would allow legislators to further restrict or ban abortion, Friday, July 8, 2022, in Olathe, Kan. They are among about 300 college students brought into Kansas by the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America group, which backs the measure. (AP Photo/John Hanna, File)

Vulnerable House Dems see abortion as winning campaign theme

The Supreme Court’s decision to repeal a woman’s federal constitutional right to abortion has scrambled the political dynamics heading into the November elections, when control of Congress is at … more

By THOMAS BEAUMONT | 7/31/22