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VOTE411 Voter Guide

Kansas Senate, District 07

The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators representing an equal amount of districts, each with a population of at least 60,000 inhabitants. Members of the Senate are elected to a four-year term. There is no limit to the number of terms that a senator may serve.

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  • Candidate picture

    Ethan Corson
    (Dem)

  • Candidate picture

    Dave Dannov
    (Rep)

Biographical Information

What makes you the best candidate for this position? What skills, expertise, or competencies qualify you?

What are Kansas's three most important issues, and how do you intend to address them?

How would you make it easier for Kansas citizens to follow bills as they flow through the legislature? What, if any, changes would you propose in the “Gut and Go” process?

Would you support changes to Kansas election laws and voting systems? Why?

Campaign Web Site http://www.ethanforkansas.com
Campaign Phone 314-324-5405
Personal Biography Ethan is a dad, husband, attorney, and graduate of the Shawnee Mission School District who is running for re-election to the Kansas Senate, where he has earned a reputation as a bipartisan problem solver who builds coalitions to deliver results for District 7. He is a Member of the Senate Judiciary, Tax, Transportation, and Utilities Committees as well as the Joint Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice Oversight. Ethan lives in Fairway with his wife, Jenna, and their two sons.
Education J.D., cum laude, Washington University in St. Louis School of Law; B.S. with Honors, Washington University in St. Louis; A.A. Garden City Community College
Community/Public Service Kansas Senator, District 7 (2021-present). Non-voting member, Board of Directors, GoodLife Innovations, which provides high-quality care for adults with disabilities in Johnson, Douglas, Allen, and Sedgwick counties (2023-present).
I have a proven record of working across the aisle to deliver results for our community. In my first-term, I've fully-funded our public schools, cut taxes for every Kansan, brought new jobs and businesses to our county, and protected reproductive and LGBTQ rights. I’ve also served in a way that is transparent and accessible, holding a public town hall every single month I’ve been in office – that’s 44 consecutive monthly town halls. Additionally, I send a weekly newsletter every week the legislature is in session.

I am one of only two attorneys in the Kansas Senate, and one of the few legislators with first-hand economic development experience, gleaned from my work in two senior leadership positions in the U.S. Department of Commerce.
1. Supporting public education: We must continue to fully-fund our public schools. We also need to fully fund Special Education, increase teacher pay, and improve our early childhood system. 2. Lowering taxes and the cost of living: I’m proud to have supported over $2 billion in tax cuts, including eliminating taxes on Social Security and groceries, cutting property and income taxes, and doubling the Child Care Tax Credit. I will continue to lower property taxes. 3. Growing our economy and creating jobs: I have supported a range of economic development policies that have led to record growth. I voted for the legislation that brought Panasonic to Johnson County and the bill to attract the Chiefs and Royals. I will continue this progress.
The legislature needs to reform its processes to be more accountable to and transparent with, the citizens it serves. It needs to eliminate the “Gut and Go” process, where the contents of a bill are stripped out and new – often unvetted – legislation is inserted. It also needs to eliminate the practice of bundling multiple bills together. Instead, legislators should be able to cast a “yes” or “no” vote on a single bill, with a single subject matter. Finally, the legislature needs to make sure that the public is given adequate notice of all hearings so the public can testify in-person or submit written testimony, and supporters and opponents of legislation should be provided equal time to testify at hearings.
I not only support making changes to Kansas election laws and voting systems to make voting easier, but I’ve led the way in this effort. I introduced a bill to enact same day voter registration, so an eligible voter could register to vote on Election Day or during Early Voting and vote that same day. I also introduced a bill that would allow Early Voting to begin 40 days before Election Day instead of the current 20. For Kansans who vote by mail, I introduced legislation to allow any voter to be a permanent advance voter and have a ballot mailed to them every election. And for younger Kansans, I introduced a bill that would allow 16-year-olds to register to vote and automatically be added to the voter rolls when they turn 18.
Campaign Web Site http://www.davedannov.com
Campaign Phone 9139999139
Personal Biography A long-time resident of the area, I’ve lived in either Mission or Fairway since 1983. Sally (Zemites) Dannov has been my spouse for over 35 years. We have two children, Patty and Lina. Sally is a life-long Kansas City resident and Patty and Lina both attended Shawnee Mission public schools and continue to reside in the Kansas City area. I graduated from the University of Missouri in 1983 with an in Accounting degree, then moved to Kansas City to work for an accounting firm. In 1987 I moved
Education University of Missouri-Columbia
I have tremendous business experience leading a multi-national agri-business entity, Seaboard Overseas & Trading Group. In these various roles, I have gained experience in a wide range of areas: treasury, taxation, reporting, compliance, strategy, policy, talent management, government affairs, agriculture, manufacturing, litigation, acquisitions, contracting, negotiations, etc. My experience at Seaboard taught me that institutions achieve better results for all stakeholders if they work together to reach compromise and mutually agreeable solutions. I believe this broad experience working in complex environments will bring a unique and different skill to the legislature.
Property Tax Relief-I would work within the legislature to identify methods to eliminate extraordinary increases in property taxes, in particular, to support those on fixed incomes and small businesses. Fully Funding K-12 Education-I will ensure Kansas continues existing funding of K-12 education, including special education. Public Safety-I support working with law enforcement officials to identify and implement policies to enhance public security.
Transparency in governing is always important for residents to understand the legislative process. However, I understand the complexity of the process involving detailed negotiations to create compromise does result in some actions not being in the public space. Further, the short legislative session complicates passing legislation. Generally, I support legislation that establishes rules that make the Gut and Go process more transparent so long as it did not impede effective governance.
I believe that the Kansas election laws have a good combination of strong voting access (advance and mail voting) while also establishing processes to prevent fraud.