VOTE411 Voter Guide

I have been volunteering as an election worker in Johnson County since 2018, obtaining hands-on training and experience in administering our election laws in every election, including the Presidential Preference Primary in 2024. In 2019, I stepped into the assistant supervisor role on election day for the general. In 2022, I moved into the supervising judge position of my assigned polling location for the general. Working the last 15 elections has provided me with the opportunity to encounter a variety of different voting situations that range from registration issues to electioneering infractions to being able to help hundreds of first-time voters feel as comfortable as possible during a very important moment in their lives. Running a polling place requires the supervising judge to create a schedule, follow instructions closely for the opening and closing of the polling location, as well as keep up with management of the polling site throughout the voting period.

I plan to advocate for an extension of our advanced voting period to start 30 days out from election day to give our counties more time to process advanced mail ballots. This will change some deadlines (the June 1st filing deadline for candidates; the registration deadline prior to each election) but it’s a necessary update to maintain the integrity of our mail ballots for those who choose to use them. I will also promote the implementation of permanent mail ballot allowance for all, regardless of disability status (which you currently need to state the existence of to request a permanent advanced mail ballot).

Voter education is VERY important. I think this office should focus on finding better ways to help in those efforts using in-person events, social media platforms, and advertisements.

Election law violations should be prosecuted by the local authority entrusted to prosecute crimes committed within their county, possibly with the assistance of the state’s Attorney General.

Kansas has great processes in place, mandated by existing statutes, that maintain a high level of safety and security for our election systems. Voter ID laws, testing and balancing voting machines and other equipment prior to elections, mail ballot review and curing processes, and post-election audits are just a few elements of what make our elections very safe, secure, and still extremely accessible.

I believe the secretary of state should establish a partnership with each county government to ensure they are coordinating with their election officials on costs required to update security systems sufficiently. While the machines we utilize for voting throughout Kansas are not connected to the internet, there may be varying exposures to external connections in other portions of the election systems utilized from county to county, and we must do everything we can to maintain our voter privacy and security however we can.

I agree with Secretary Scott Schwab’s proposal to streamline campaign finance filing by sending reports directly to the Public Disclosure Commission instead of routing them through the Secretary of State’s office. Because the commission is a separate entity, there is little reason for the Secretary of State to be involved before public reporting. More details appear in the Kansas Reflector article, “Kansas secretary of state seeks to improve efficiency of filing campaign, lobbying reports,” published Oct. 21, 2025.

Many voters are disillusioned by the influence of money in politics. Kansas should explore public small-donor matching programs to help candidates spend their time connecting with constituents rather than wealthy, out-of-district or out-of-state donors as they campaign. I also support greater transparency in outside-group campaign disclosures, so voters know who is backing a candidate or constitutional amendment.

Kansas is one of 20 states that explicitly prohibits voting in more than one state, and it is a felony to do so. It is very rare that a voter will accept the risk of voting more than once in an election, and past policies put in place such as the “interstate cross-check program” implemented by former Kansas Secretary of State, Kris Kobach, proved to create a bigger problem of purging eligible voters at the expense of preventing miniscule levels of possible fraudulent actions.

Purging voters based on matching names, birth dates, or death records is risky. While county clerks work to keep voter rolls current, duplicate records have been removed using only names and birth dates, sometimes without considering the sex of the voter. Before removing anyone registered in two counties, officials should contact the voter to confirm whether they moved, registered again, or were misidentified as deceased because of a similar name.

As Secretary of State for Kansas, I will promote continuance of the security, accuracy, and safety of our elections. Kansas can serve as a model for voter access on a national stage by demonstrating that election integrity and voter access go hand in hand. Every eligible voter should have the opportunity to participate in our democracy, and the secretary of state’s office plays an important role in making that process clear, transparent, and efficient.

The role of our secretary of state should be largely focused on state-level administration matters, not seeking national headlines. If we’re recognized for anything, I hope it will be our exemplary service to those who need to interact with the office for voter information, business filings, and information on regulations and laws.

My experience spans election law, government management, and private business. I represented the U.S. Senate on the Federal Election Commission, served as Chief Counsel for Senator Bob Dole’s 1988 presidential campaign, was a staff counsel for the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, and Chief Counsel in the office of Governor Mike Hayden. I also served two terms on the Lawrence School Board, including twice as president.

In the private sector, I co-founded and managed a publishing company that grew from a small start-up into a nationally recognized business.

That combination taught me how to interpret complex laws, manage people and systems, work across political lines, and deliver reliable public service. The Secretary of State’s office needs both election-law knowledge and practical management experience. I bring both.

The Secretary of State does not write election laws, but the office should be active in the legislative process, recommend improvements, and bring people together to study them.

I would create citizen task forces to examine independent redistricting, alternatives to closed primaries, fusion and ranked-choice voting, ways to encourage younger voters, and whether election administration should remain under a partisan elected official.

I would also protect advance and mail voting while preserving strong safeguards.

I opposed giving the Secretary of State independent prosecutorial power when Kris Kobach sought it. Election officials should identify and report possible violations, but criminal cases should be handled by trained prosecutors. The Secretary of State and county clerks should focus on administering elections fairly, securely, and impartially.

Election security begins with strong local administration. Kansas relies on county election officials, yet the state provides too little financial and technical support for the systems they are expected to protect. I would work for state funding, cybersecurity expertise, regular testing, incident-response plans, and coordination among counties, state agencies, and federal partners.

Kansas should preserve and build upon existing safeguards, including voter-verified paper ballots, equipment that cannot connect to the internet, post-election testing and audits, ballot security, and statewide chain-of-custody standards. The paper ballot should remain the final authority in audits and recounts. Kansas should also study risk-limiting audits to provide added confidence in election results.

Kansans should know how systems are tested, how results are verified, and what safeguards exist. The goal is not to spread fear, but to build confidence through sound procedures and verifiable results.

I support transferring campaign-finance and lobbying disclosure filings to the Kansas Public Disclosure Commission, which already interprets and enforces those laws. Consolidating responsibility should reduce duplication and make the system easier for candidates, lobbyists, and the public to use.

Money nevertheless remains an important election issue. As the state’s chief election officer, the Secretary of State should support practical measures that help voters understand who is financing campaigns and political advertising, including clear, timely, and searchable online disclosure.

The office should work with the Commission and the Legislature to improve how campaign-finance information is collected, presented, and made useful to voters, while respecting the Commission’s regulatory and enforcement role. Money will always influence politics, but voters should be able to see and evaluate that influence.

Accurate voter rolls matter, and states should share reliable information that helps election officials identify deaths, duplicate registrations, and people who have moved. But any compact must include strong privacy protections, transparent standards, careful matching procedures, and meaningful notice before an eligible voter is removed.

I would not support a system that uses uncertain data or broad computer matches to block thousands of eligible voters in the hope of finding a very small number of improper registrations. Registration in more than one state is not itself illegal; voting twice is. Kansas should use well-tested tools to keep its rolls current while placing the burden on government to verify information before taking away an eligible citizen’s registration.

We are capable of doing two things at once. Accuracy and access must be protected together.

Kansas should be known nationally for secure, accessible, well-run elections and for finding practical ways to encourage eligible citizens to participate. The Secretary of State should work constructively with officials from other states regardless of their party, share Kansas successes, learn from approaches that work elsewhere, and defend the state’s authority to administer its own elections.

As a candidate who is neither Republican nor Democrat, I would bring a different voice to national discussions, one focused on voters rather than party advantage. I would promote Kansas through calm competence, transparency, support for county election officials, and confidence in democratic participation. We should not project fear or anger. We should show that Kansas can protect election integrity while welcoming every eligible voter into the process.

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