There is another aspect to the priamry, one that is rooted in Kansas history. The state has two U.S. Senators, and it had long been tradition to have one Senator from eastern Kansas, which is more urban, and one from the praries of western Kansas. This is not unusual, and in fact was very commonplace in the U.S. for most of the Senate’s history. Of course, with the rise of mass media and the weakening of community ties, this has far less impact now. Still, that continues today in Kansas, with the agrarian Pat Roberts and the Topeka-based Sam Brownback.
Frankly, I don’t feel passionately towards one or the other. Either one would probably be roughly the same, although Tiahrt might be marginally better (although Moran scored as the most Conservative from KS last year). According to Kabar, Tiahrt has improved his record on immigration, but Brownback’s is terrible. I’d prefer NOT to see Brownback as Governor, because I suspect he may try to use that as a springboard for the Presidency (just in time as his voting record has worsened into mushy “moderate” territory, and he clearly suffers from Potomac Fever). Since the Dems have no viable candidates, I wouldn’t mind seeing Tiahrt switch to the Gov’s race and knock out Brownback. KS has a real problem with illegals, and I have a sneaking suspicion that Brownback won’t do squat about it.