Free Republic

After surviving a primary challenge and winning a general election, Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) declared that he heard his "marching orders" from Kansas voters to be conservative. "I've heard my marching orders loud and clear," Roberts, a Marine veteran, said during his Tuesday evening victory speech. "I will be bold. I will be conservative. And I will be constructive." Roberts, who has been against amnesty legislation since the 1980s, survived his primary challenge against Milton Wolf because there was no daylight between Roberts and Wolf on illegal immigration....

I’d almost forgotten to write this column. I’m sitting here watching election returns, and I am just stunned. Massachusetts? Maryland? MARYLAND?!?! Forget the Senate for a minute, or the massive Republican majority in the House, and think about the fact that Republicans did so well in the gubernatorial races across the country. In Michigan, after passing a “Right-To-Work” law, Gov. Rick Snyder wins handily. Union money and muscle plus President Obama campaigning against him couldn’t sink a man with the Twitter handle @OneToughNerd. Speaking of unions, no one had a bigger target placed on their back by the unions than...

Yesterday’s Democratic wipeout had many causes, but immigration was clearly one of them. When the president said, “My policies are on the ballot this fall,” he was talking about things already done, like Obamacare, but also things to come. And whatever we think he might do in the future, he’s made only one concrete policy promise in that regard — unilateral lawless amnesty for millions of illegal aliens by the end of the year. (SNIP) As Mickey Kaus noted, “Schumer would probably be chairman of the lucrative Banking Committee if he hadn’t pushed his amnesty bill.” (SNIP) Only one ballot...

The Kansas governor’s race was a nailbiter all night, with Republican incumbent Sam Brownback neck and neck with his Democrat challenger Paul Davis right up until Davis conceded around midnight EST. Looking at recent media coverage leading up to the election, though, you never would’ve known that #KSgov was a race to watch, especially since so many talking heads heralded it as a referendum on conservative policies. Left and right wing outlets began writing Brownback off for his aggressive tax policies weeks and even months ago, with many calling his predicted loss a mandate for moderation. With 100% of precincts...

Brownback wins; Paul Davis concedes.

Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) was projected to defeat Independent candidate Greg Orman, according to CBS and Fox News. The Kansas Senate race heated up in September, when Democrat Chad Taylor withdrew from the race and attempted to remove his name from the ballot. According to the AP, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach declared Taylor didn't fully comply with a state election law in submitting his letter of withdrawal, and the dispute was taken to the state Supreme Court. The court ordered the state to remove Taylor's name from the ballot. A September poll suggested the court's decision might have...

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas – NBC News calls Senate race for Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts...

Early exit polls show GOP wins in KY, AR, CO, IA, KS, GA - if those hold, GOP Senate majority is certain. Watch VA - closer than expected. Early exit polls show GOP wins in KY, AR, CO, IA, KS, GA - if those hold, GOP Senate majority is certain. Watch VA - closer than expected.— Sean Noble (@seannobledc)

Same-sex couples may soon be able to marry in Kansas following a federal judge's ruling on Tuesday that the state's ban on same-sex marriage violates the U.S. Constitution. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Crabtree granted a preliminary injunction stopping Kansas from enforcing its ban on gay marriage and put the ruling on hold until Nov. 11 to give Kansas an opportunity to appeal. The decision, if upheld, would add to more than a dozen states where same-sex marriage has become legal since the U.S. Supreme Court said on Oct. 6 that it would not review recent U.S. appeals court decisions...

Been waiting on the Democrat's October Surprise. Seems like racial slurs is all it is. But instead they got Jean Shaheen's involvement with Lois Learner on the IRS Scandal and a claim by VP Joe Biden that Greg Orman is with the Democrats.

Vice President Joe Biden blew Kansas independent Greg Orman's cover in a radio interview today. Orman hasn't stated which party he'll caucus with in the Senate--actively avoiding announcing whether he'll be with Republicans or Democrats--but Biden stated definitively that Orman "will be with us" if he's elected. Listen here:

WICHITA, Kan. -- It seems all eyes are on Kansas, especially in regard to the hotly contested U.S. Senate race between U.S. Senator Pat Roberts and challenger Greg Orman. In the hours leading into the election, Roberts said this is a potentially historic moment in American political history. A vote for him will assure what's best for the country, he said.

Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kans.) is in the fight for his political life. Current polls show him barely trailing his opponent, which would make Kansas look like a golden pickup opportunity for Senate Democrats, right?Not so much. In early September, Democrat Chad Taylor suddenly dropped out of the crowded Kansas Senate, leaving a two-man race between Roberts and Greg Orman, who insists that he’s totally an independent and not a partisan Democrat. Orman even swears that he has no idea who he’ll support for Senate Majority Leader if he wins the election next Tuesday. That’s how independent he is.But if Orman...

Another week, another poll showing the race between incumbent Republican Pat Roberts and Democrat-turned-Independent Greg Orman is too close to call - within the margin of error. Orman has maintained a small yet consistent lead recently but has only led by more than two points in a single poll. On Friday, Fox News released their latest poll of the Kansas race and found Orman up by one point. Roberts has done much to close what looked to be a sizable gap but the race has been plus or minus a few points throughout October. Fox finds 44% say they're for...

One of the treasured vanities of my home state of Kansas is the idea that, although we are the nation’s laggards and late-comers in so many ways, there are other departments in which we are way ahead of everyone else, savoring the fast-food treats you will one day savor and debating the issues that you, too, will agonize over before too long. It’s an understandable fantasy for a people who are constantly reminded by the culture at large how lame and uncool they are, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t coming true, for once, in 2014. This week, Kansas...

November 1, 2014 Kansas Republicans Take Strong Lead in Early Voting Ky Sisson 10/30/2014 8:00:00 PM - Ky Sisson It was a sad day last night in Kansas when the Kansas City Royals lost the World Series in Game 7. Today, the GOP in "The Sunflower State" have something to celebrate as early voting results show positive turnout from Republicans.  Of the 153,436 early votes cast so far this election 82,739 or 54% were cast by Republicans. In comparison only 47,468, or 31% were cast by Democrats. The remaining votes were cast by unaffiliated or libertarian voters. The blood red state of...

Fox News Poll: 1-Point Margin in Iowa, Kansas and North Carolina Senate Races By Dana Blanton October 31, 2014 “It all comes down to turnout.” That’s one of the biggest clichés in politics. It’s also true in one-point races. Welcome to Iowa, Kansas and North Carolina. According to the latest round of Fox News Senate battleground polls, none of the front-runners in those states hits the 50 percent mark. That means these races will be decided by late-deciding voters -- and campaigns competing furiously to get their voters to the polls. One thing that is baked into the cake: President...

TOPEKA, Kan. — Four years ago, Joan Wagnon was a 70-year-old grandmother preparing to retire after decades of public service. A centrist Democrat long credited as blazing the way for women in politics in Kansas, she spent 12 years in the state Legislature and four years as mayor of Topeka — the first and only woman to hold the job. After eight years as state secretary of revenue, Wagnon was preparing to hang it up when "the massacre" happened. On Election Day 2010, Sam Brownback, a two-term, hard-line conservative U.S. senator and a 2008 candidate for the Republican presidential nomination,...

In the tight race between incumbent Republican Pat Roberts and "independent" candidate Greg Orman in Kansas, the Democrats are implicitly pro-Orman. The two-way race between Orman and Roberts has been close ever since Democrats pressured the official Democratic candidate to drop out of the race. But now, the Kansas Republican Party has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against the Kansas Democratic Party for illegal "in-kind" contributions to the Orman campaign. Kansas Democrats have hung pro-Orman signs at official Democratic Party offices which, according to the GOP's complaint, is illegal: Parties have traditionally used the volunteer exemption for...

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Beloved Kansas State University football coach Bill Snyder on Thursday endorsed Sen. Pat Roberts for re-election and is appearing in a new television ad for the three-term Republican incumbent, potentially giving the GOP a boost in a race with national implications. Roberts' campaign launched the statewide spot just five days before the election, which has Roberts locked in a tough contest with independent candidate Greg Orman, a 45-year-old Olathe businessman and co-founder of a private equity firm. Snyder is highly respected throughout the state and college football. His 6-1 Wildcats are the only Big 12 team...