SHAWNEE COUNTY —One person was injured in an accident just before 9p.m. Tuesday in Shawnee County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1995 Nissan pickup driven by Philip J. Salerno, 66, St. Marys, 1 was westbound on U.S. 24 in Silver Lake.&nbsp;

The pickup traveled left of center and struck a 2004 Ford F150 driven by Gerald H. Ginest, 76, Topeka, head-on in the eastbound lane.

Salerno&nbsp; was pronounced dead at the scene. EMS transported Ginest to a Topeka hospital. Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

SHAWNEE COUNTY —One person was injured in an accident just before 9p.m. Tuesday in Shawnee County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1995 Nissan pickup driven by Philip J. Salerno, 66, St. Marys, 1 was westbound on U.S. 24 in Silver Lake.&nbsp; The pickup traveled left of center and struck a 2004 Ford F150 driven by Gerald H. Ginest, 76, Topeka, head-on in the eastbound lane.Salerno&nbsp; was pronounced dead at the scene. EMS transported Ginest to a Topeka hospital. Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

Kan. man dies after head-on pickup crash

By&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/sherman-smith/">Sherman Smith</a>&nbsp;

<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2020/11/03/kansas-congressional-races-republicans-poised-to-return-three-to-d-c-alongside-democrat-davids/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Republican state Treasurer Jake LaTurner extended his rapid political ascent Tuesday by defeating Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla in the 2nd District congressional race Tuesday.

The 32-year-old LaTurner won by a 55-41 margin after a campaign marked by his dubious assertions that De La Isla wanted to defund police. He appealed to voters with an emphasis on faith in God, the importance of family, love of country, and the dignity of work.

“There are those who would have you believe the American Dream is dead, but it is alive,” LaTurner told supporters at a block party in his hometown of Galena. “It is alive with the farmer who gets up at the crack of dawn and doesn’t know what the weather is going to bring. It’s alive with the couple that takes out a second mortgage on their home to open up a small business. It’s alive with the single parent who’s working a full-time job while taking online classes to make it through their college degree.

“It’s alive here tonight, and I want you to know that I’m going to go to Washington, D.C., and make sure we keep it alive for future generations.”

Kansas Republicans returned three delegates to the U.S. House, including LaTurner.

Former Lt. Gov. Tracey Mann, a Republican from Salina, defeated Democrat Kali Barnett, a music teacher from Garden City, by a 70-30 margin in the sprawling 1st District that covers much of the western two-thirds of the state. Republican Rep. Ron Estes defeated Democrat Laura Lombard, a business development consultant, in the Wichita-area 4th District by a 65-35 margin.

The state’s lone Democratic delegate, Sharice Davids, won her second term representing the Kansas City-area 3rd District by defeating Cerner executive Amanda Adkins. Davids won by a 54-44 margin.

“In this race, Kansans spoke loud and clear,” Davids said. “They rejected the tired politics of the past, of the slashed school budgets, being denied coverage because of having a pre-existing condition. They chose a different vision for who we send to the United States Houses.”

Democrats hoped that record turnout would place them in contention in congressional races this year. More than 813,000 Kansans cast votes by mail or in person before the election, and another 400,000 turned out to vote on Tuesday. The early leads posted by Democrats evaporated quickly as Election Day ballots were counted.

The nomination of&nbsp;Adkins and the four Democratic contenders made history as Kansas showcased more women candidates for Congress than ever before.

“I know a lot of people have just gotten really actively engaged,” Barnett said. “I ran into someone in the community a few days ago that said, ‘Wait, I know I’ve seen you somewhere. Oh, You’re the woman on TV that’s trying hard to make a difference. And I just thought, wow, you’re a breath of fresh air — a young woman who’s trying to make a difference, and I’m absolutely going to vote for you.’ ”

In the 2nd District race, De La Isla frequently battled LaTurner over false claims about her gutting police resources, and she attacked the Republican as a handpicked ally of former Gov. Sam Brownback.

De La Isla, 44, was born in New York and raised in Puerto Rico. She was homeless and a teenage mother before graduating from Wichita State University in 2001. She moved to Topeka in 2005.

Speaking at the Democratic watch party in Topeka, the mayor said she was “excited by the sisterhood” that developed among the Democratic candidates for congressional office.

“I’m proud to say we have run a race that is a model race, a clean race, a race that not only has made Kansans proud — but you know what, most importantly, it has made my daughters proud,” De La Isla said.

Brownback appointed LaTurner to fill a seat in the Kansas Senate when LaTurner was just 24 years old, then later appointed him to the treasurer post. LaTurner won election for the office in 2018, and defeated embattled incumbent Rep. Steve Watkins in the Republican primary in August.

President Donald Trump endorsed LaTurner on Saturday via Twitter: “@JakeLaTurner will be a phenomenal Congressman for the people of Kansas! He will help us Lower your Taxes, Support our Brave Law Enforcement, Build the Wall, and Protect and Defend your Second Amendment. Jake has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”

In Johnson County, the comparisons to Brownback were more damaging for Adkins, a former Brownback adviser and Brownback-appointed chairwoman of the Kansas Children’s Cabinet.

Davids, the first Native American and member of the LGBTQ community to represent Kansas in Congress, attacked the Republican for wanting to dismantle the Affordable Care Act and its protections for pre-existing conditions. Adkins touted her business experience and, as an executive of a health care technology company, railed against government-run health care.

“These delusional socialists in Congress are completely out of touch with our Kansas values,” Adkins said when she announced her campaign. “Their obsession with identity politics is unrealistic.”

Estes, a former state treasurer, won a special election in 2017 to fill the congressional seat vacated by Mike Pompeo. He then won re-election two years ago.

He described himself as a champion for tax reform, free and fair trade, and retirement security.

“I’m working to bring home the supply chain,” he told voters, “because we can no longer rely on having food, critical medicine and protective equipment made in China.

His opponent, Lombard, said she was motivated to run because Republicans like Estes had emboldened the president’s “corrupt and authoritarian behavior.”

“There is real concern about the future of our democracy and our country,” she said.

Mann arrived on the political scene in 2010 with objections to the citizenship of President Barack Obama. The commercial real estate broker finished third that year in the Republican primary for the 1st District nomination.

Colyer chose&nbsp;Mann, who renounced his doubts about Obama’s birthplace, to be lieutenant governor in 2018 after Brownback left for an ambassador role in Trump’s administration.

“I will fight to restore fiscal discipline in Congress and will support sound agricultural policy,” Mann said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/LaTurner1.jpg" alt="Republican Jake LaTurner addresses supporters Tuesday from a block party in his hometown of Galena. (Submitted by Kara Zeyer to Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Republican Jake LaTurner addresses supporters Tuesday from a block party in his hometown of Galena. (Submitted by Kara Zeyer to Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/sherman-smith/">Sherman Smith</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2020/11/03/kansas-congressional-races-republicans-poised-to-return-three-to-d-c-alongside-democrat-davids/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Republican state Treasurer Jake LaTurner extended his rapid political ascent Tuesday by defeating Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla in the 2nd District congressional race Tuesday.The 32-year-old LaTurner won by a 55-41 margin after a campaign marked by his dubious assertions that De La Isla wanted to defund police. He appealed to voters with an emphasis on faith in God, the importance of family, love of country, and the dignity of work.“There are those who would have you believe the American Dream is dead, but it is alive,” LaTurner told supporters at a block party in his hometown of Galena. “It is alive with the farmer who gets up at the crack of dawn and doesn’t know what the weather is going to bring. It’s alive with the couple that takes out a second mortgage on their home to open up a small business. It’s alive with the single parent who’s working a full-time job while taking online classes to make it through their college degree.“It’s alive here tonight, and I want you to know that I’m going to go to Washington, D.C., and make sure we keep it alive for future generations.”Kansas Republicans returned three delegates to the U.S. House, including LaTurner.Former Lt. Gov. Tracey Mann, a Republican from Salina, defeated Democrat Kali Barnett, a music teacher from Garden City, by a 70-30 margin in the sprawling 1st District that covers much of the western two-thirds of the state. Republican Rep. Ron Estes defeated Democrat Laura Lombard, a business development consultant, in the Wichita-area 4th District by a 65-35 margin.The state’s lone Democratic delegate, Sharice Davids, won her second term representing the Kansas City-area 3rd District by defeating Cerner executive Amanda Adkins. Davids won by a 54-44 margin.“In this race, Kansans spoke loud and clear,” Davids said. “They rejected the tired politics of the past, of the slashed school budgets, being denied coverage because of having a pre-existing condition. They chose a different vision for who we send to the United States Houses.”Democrats hoped that record turnout would place them in contention in congressional races this year. More than 813,000 Kansans cast votes by mail or in person before the election, and another 400,000 turned out to vote on Tuesday. The early leads posted by Democrats evaporated quickly as Election Day ballots were counted.The nomination of&nbsp;Adkins and the four Democratic contenders made history as Kansas showcased more women candidates for Congress than ever before.“I know a lot of people have just gotten really actively engaged,” Barnett said. “I ran into someone in the community a few days ago that said, ‘Wait, I know I’ve seen you somewhere. Oh, You’re the woman on TV that’s trying hard to make a difference. And I just thought, wow, you’re a breath of fresh air — a young woman who’s trying to make a difference, and I’m absolutely going to vote for you.’ ”<figure>
 <img src="https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/delaisla3-300x226.jpg" alt="Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla, the Democratic nominee for Congress in the 2nd District, battled her Republican opponent over police funding and health care. (Aug.. 25 file photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Topeka Mayor Michelle De La Isla, the Democratic nominee for Congress in the 2nd District, battled her Republican opponent over police funding and health care. (Aug.. 25 file photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>In the 2nd District race, De La Isla frequently battled LaTurner over false claims about her gutting police resources, and she attacked the Republican as a handpicked ally of former Gov. Sam Brownback.De La Isla, 44, was born in New York and raised in Puerto Rico. She was homeless and a teenage mother before graduating from Wichita State University in 2001. She moved to Topeka in 2005.Speaking at the Democratic watch party in Topeka, the mayor said she was “excited by the sisterhood” that developed among the Democratic candidates for congressional office.“I’m proud to say we have run a race that is a model race, a clean race, a race that not only has made Kansans proud — but you know what, most importantly, it has made my daughters proud,” De La Isla said.Brownback appointed LaTurner to fill a seat in the Kansas Senate when LaTurner was just 24 years old, then later appointed him to the treasurer post. LaTurner won election for the office in 2018, and defeated embattled incumbent Rep. Steve Watkins in the Republican primary in August.President Donald Trump endorsed LaTurner on Saturday via Twitter: “@JakeLaTurner will be a phenomenal Congressman for the people of Kansas! He will help us Lower your Taxes, Support our Brave Law Enforcement, Build the Wall, and Protect and Defend your Second Amendment. Jake has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”In Johnson County, the comparisons to Brownback were more damaging for Adkins, a former Brownback adviser and Brownback-appointed chairwoman of the Kansas Children’s Cabinet.<figure>
 <img src="https://kansasreflector.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/d3screen1-300x225.jpg" alt="Democratic U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, left, clashed with Republican challenger Amanda Adkins during an Oct. 22 debate with competing views on how to revive an economy wrecked by COVID-19. (Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Democratic U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, left, clashed with Republican challenger Amanda Adkins during an Oct. 22 debate with competing views on how to revive an economy wrecked by COVID-19. (Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>Davids, the first Native American and member of the LGBTQ community to represent Kansas in Congress, attacked the Republican for wanting to dismantle the Affordable Care Act and its protections for pre-existing conditions. Adkins touted her business experience and, as an executive of a health care technology company, railed against government-run health care.“These delusional socialists in Congress are completely out of touch with our Kansas values,” Adkins said when she announced her campaign. “Their obsession with identity politics is unrealistic.”Estes, a former state treasurer, won a special election in 2017 to fill the congressional seat vacated by Mike Pompeo. He then won re-election two years ago.He described himself as a champion for tax reform, free and fair trade, and retirement security.“I’m working to bring home the supply chain,” he told voters, “because we can no longer rely on having food, critical medicine and protective equipment made in China.His opponent, Lombard, said she was motivated to run because Republicans like Estes had emboldened the president’s “corrupt and authoritarian behavior.”“There is real concern about the future of our democracy and our country,” she said.Mann arrived on the political scene in 2010 with objections to the citizenship of President Barack Obama. The commercial real estate broker finished third that year in the Republican primary for the 1st District nomination.Colyer chose&nbsp;Mann, who renounced his doubts about Obama’s birthplace, to be lieutenant governor in 2018 after Brownback left for an ambassador role in Trump’s administration.“I will fight to restore fiscal discipline in Congress and will support sound agricultural policy,” Mann said.

Republican Jake LaTurner defeats Topeka mayor; Davids wins 2nd term

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Ron Estes wins reelection to U.S. House in Kansas' 4th Congressional District.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Ron Estes wins reelection to U.S. House in Kansas' 4th Congressional District.

Ron Estes wins reelection in Kansas 4th  District

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a gyrocopter piloted Kerry E. Trent, 58, Wichita, was flying southbound into a field at 7800 NW Tawakoni Road in Butler County. 

For unknown reasons it crashed in the field.

Trent and a passenger&nbsp;Tucker, Shannon W. Tucker, 53, Wichita, were pronounced dead at the scene and were transported to the Sedgwick County Forensic Center.

POTWIN, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say two people have died after a type of aircraft called a gyrocopter crashed in south-central Kansas. 

Butler County dispatchers say the crash happened around 1:45 p.m. Tuesday just west of the Butler County town of Potwin. The names of the victims weren’t immediately released.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604446725356.png" alt="First responders on the scene of the fatal crash- photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>First responders on the scene of the fatal crash- photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>BUTLER COUNTY —The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a gyrocopter piloted Kerry E. Trent, 58, Wichita, was flying southbound into a field at 7800 NW Tawakoni Road in Butler County. For unknown reasons it crashed in the field.Trent and a passenger&nbsp;Tucker, Shannon W. Tucker, 53, Wichita, were pronounced dead at the scene and were transported to the Sedgwick County Forensic Center.---------POTWIN, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say two people have died after a type of aircraft called a gyrocopter crashed in south-central Kansas. Butler County dispatchers say the crash happened around 1:45 p.m. Tuesday just west of the Butler County town of Potwin. The names of the victims weren’t immediately released.

KHP ID's 2 Kan. men who died in gyrocopter crash 

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man accused in his wife's murder made his first court appearance on Monday.

Craig Johnston,  43 of Sedgwick, is charged with 1st degree murder, rape, aggravated criminal sodomy, and aggravated sexual battery, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

Just after 9:00 a.m. Oct. 30, deputies were sent to 7910 E 109th Street North in rural Sedgwick County to assist EMS, according to Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lt. Benjamin Blick.

 When they arrived they found 40-year-old Amber Dawn Slankard with critical injuries. 

EMS transported her to Via Christi St. Francis and she later died of her injuries. 

The victim’s husband Craig Johnston, 42, was transported to Sheriff Investigations and later booked on requested charges of Second Degree Murder and violations of the Offender Registration Act, according to Blick.&nbsp;

 Johnston has a previous conviction from Illinois in 1997 for aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a victim between the age of 13-16, according to the Offender Registry.

He remains jailed on a $100,000 bond, according to the district attorney.

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating the death of a woman and have made an arrest.

Shortly after 9:00 a.m. Friday, deputies were sent to 7910 E 109th Street North in rural Sedgwick County to assist EMS, according to Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lt. Benjamin Blick.

 When they arrived they found a 40-year-old woman with critical injuries. 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603540130048.png" alt="Craig Johnston-photo Sedgwick County." />
 <figcaption>Craig Johnston-photo Sedgwick County.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man accused in his wife's murder made his first court appearance on Monday.Craig Johnston, 43 of Sedgwick, is charged with 1st degree murder, rape, aggravated criminal sodomy, and aggravated sexual battery, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.Just after 9:00 a.m. Oct. 30, deputies were sent to 7910 E 109th Street North in rural Sedgwick County to assist EMS, according to Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lt. Benjamin Blick. When they arrived they found 40-year-old Amber Dawn Slankard with critical injuries. EMS transported her to Via Christi St. Francis and she later died of her injuries. The victim’s husband Craig Johnston, 42, was transported to Sheriff Investigations and later booked on requested charges of Second Degree Murder and violations of the Offender Registration Act, according to Blick.&nbsp; Johnston has a previous conviction from Illinois in 1997 for aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a victim between the age of 13-16, according to the Offender Registry.He remains jailed on a $100,000 bond, according to the district attorney.--------------SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating the death of a woman and have made an arrest.Shortly after 9:00 a.m. Friday, deputies were sent to 7910 E 109th Street North in rural Sedgwick County to assist EMS, according to Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lt. Benjamin Blick. When they arrived they found a 40-year-old woman with critical injuries. EMS transported her to Via Christi St. Francis and she later died of her injuries. The victim’s husband Craig Johnston, 42, was transported to Sheriff Investigations and later booked on requested charges of Second Degree Murder and violations of the Offender Registration Act, according to Blick.&nbsp; Johnston has a previous conviction from Illinois in 1997 for aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a victim between the age of 13-16, according to the Offender Registry.

Sex offender charged with wife's murder in Kansas

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating the Oct. 21 fatal shooting at a youth football game in Wichita have made an arrest.

On Tuesday morning, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, police arrested 26-year-old Maurice Hall without incident Tuesday during a vehicle stop at South Main Street and East Kellogg, according to officer Kevin Wheeler.

Hall was wanted in connection to the shooting death of 31-year-old Marquell Nolen of Wichita.

At approximately 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 21, officers responded to an unknown call for police at the Stryker Sports Complex, located at 2999 N. Greenwich.&nbsp; Upon officers arriving, they heard multiple gunshots, and while on the scene, Nolen arrived at an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.&nbsp;

The investigation revealed Nolen was at the Sports Complex, and a verbal argument ensued between him and Hall on the west side of the stadium bleachers.&nbsp; During the argument, Hall pulled out a handgun and fired multiple shots, striking Nolen.&nbsp; Nolen was taken to the hospital in a private vehicle by two individuals with him at the Sports Complex, and Hall fled on foot.&nbsp; No one else was injured.

The incident was not random, and Hall and Nolen were known to each other.&nbsp; Additionally, the incident was not related to games being played or officiated.&nbsp;

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting at a youth football game and requesting assistance in locating 23-year-old Maurice Hall of Garland, Texas.

Hall is wanted in connection to fatal Oct. 21, shooting at the Stryker Sports Complex, 2999 N. Greenwich Road in Wichita that killed 31-year-old Marquell Nolen of Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.

At approximately 9:30 p.m. on Oct. 21, officers responded to an unknown call for police at the Sports Complex.&nbsp; Upon officers arriving, they heard multiple gunshots, and while on the scene, Nolen arrived at an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.&nbsp;

This was not a random incident, and Hall and Nolen were known to each other.&nbsp; Additionally, the incident was not related to games being played or officiated.&nbsp;

Through the examination of evidence, tips provided to Crime Stoppers, and tips provided to WPD from the community, investigators learned of Hall’s involvement in the shooting, according to Davidson.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604494416890.png" alt="Hall photo Sedgwick County booking photo" />
 <figcaption>Hall photo Sedgwick County booking photo</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating the Oct. 21 fatal shooting at a youth football game in Wichita have made an arrest.On Tuesday morning, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, police arrested 26-year-old Maurice Hall without incident Tuesday during a vehicle stop at South Main Street and East Kellogg, according to officer Kevin Wheeler.Hall was wanted in connection to the shooting death of 31-year-old Marquell Nolen of Wichita.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603385886052.png" alt="Suspect image courtesy Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Suspect image courtesy Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>At approximately 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 21, officers responded to an unknown call for police at the Stryker Sports Complex, located at 2999 N. Greenwich.&nbsp; Upon officers arriving, they heard multiple gunshots, and while on the scene, Nolen arrived at an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.&nbsp;The investigation revealed Nolen was at the Sports Complex, and a verbal argument ensued between him and Hall on the west side of the stadium bleachers.&nbsp; During the argument, Hall pulled out a handgun and fired multiple shots, striking Nolen.&nbsp; Nolen was taken to the hospital in a private vehicle by two individuals with him at the Sports Complex, and Hall fled on foot.&nbsp; No one else was injured.The incident was not random, and Hall and Nolen were known to each other.&nbsp; Additionally, the incident was not related to games being played or officiated.&nbsp;--------SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting at a youth football game and requesting assistance in locating 23-year-old Maurice Hall of Garland, Texas.Hall is wanted in connection to fatal Oct. 21, shooting at the Stryker Sports Complex, 2999 N. Greenwich Road in Wichita that killed 31-year-old Marquell Nolen of Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1603385886052.png" alt="Suspect at the scene of the Oct. 21 shooting photo Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Suspect at the scene of the Oct. 21 shooting photo Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>At approximately 9:30 p.m. on Oct. 21, officers responded to an unknown call for police at the Sports Complex.&nbsp; Upon officers arriving, they heard multiple gunshots, and while on the scene, Nolen arrived at an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.&nbsp;The investigation revealed Nolen was at the Sports Complex, and a verbal argument ensued between him and Hall on the west side of the stadium bleachers.&nbsp; During the argument, Hall pulled out a handgun and fired multiple shots, striking Nolen.&nbsp; Nolen was taken to the hospital in a private vehicle by two individuals with him at the Sports Complex, and Hall fled on foot.&nbsp; No one else was injured.This was not a random incident, and Hall and Nolen were known to each other.&nbsp; Additionally, the incident was not related to games being played or officiated.&nbsp;Through the examination of evidence, tips provided to Crime Stoppers, and tips provided to WPD from the community, investigators learned of Hall’s involvement in the shooting, according to Davidson.

Police arrest Kansas youth football game gunman

TOPEKA — An Ellsworth Correctional Facility resident who died Monday, Nov. 2, had tested positive for COVID-19, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Corrections.

This is second resident death from ECF, and the ninth resident death related to COVID-19 for the department.

The resident was moved October 28 to the Lansing Correctional Facility COVID-19 Management Unit after testing positive for the virus. He was transported from LCF to the hospital on Oct. 29.

The resident was a 76-year-old while male with underlying medical concerns that contributed to his condition.&nbsp;

He was serving a 176 months sentence for two counts of aggravated indecent solicitation of a child and aggravated endangerment of a child.

TOPEKA — An Ellsworth Correctional Facility resident who died Monday, Nov. 2, had tested positive for COVID-19, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Corrections.This is second resident death from ECF, and the ninth resident death related to COVID-19 for the department.The resident was moved October 28 to the Lansing Correctional Facility COVID-19 Management Unit after testing positive for the virus. He was transported from LCF to the hospital on Oct. 29.The resident was a 76-year-old while male with underlying medical concerns that contributed to his condition.&nbsp;He was serving a 176 months sentence for two counts of aggravated indecent solicitation of a child and aggravated endangerment of a child.

Ninth Kansas inmate dies after positive COVID -19 test

NEW YORK (AP) — An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the conviction and 10-year sentence for a man who ran a $220 million predatory payday lending operation that cheated over a half-million people nationwide.

The ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan kept intact the 2018 sentencing of Richard Moseley Sr., of Kansas City.

The appeals court said Moseley’s arguments were “unpersuasive.”

Moseley, 76, was convicted in 2017 of racketeering, fraud and identity theft for crimes committed while he ran the company from 2004 to 2014.

He was charged with abusing borrowers in New York and other states with interest rates exceeding — by many multiples — the maximum legal interest rates allowed in those states.

Prosecutors said Moseley’s loan company exploited over 600,000 of the most financially vulnerable people in the country, and then Moseley dodged disgruntled customers and state regulators by operating from the Caribbean or New Zealand.

At sentencing, a prosecutor said Moseley was "playing whack-a-mole with the regulators.”

The sentencing judge read aloud excerpts from a business plan that served as a blueprint for Moseley’s businesses, saying: “If this is a business plan, then it’s a business plan for a criminal enterprise.”

NEW YORK (AP) — An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the conviction and 10-year sentence for a man who ran a $220 million predatory payday lending operation that cheated over a half-million people nationwide.The ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan kept intact the 2018 sentencing of Richard Moseley Sr., of Kansas City.The appeals court said Moseley’s arguments were “unpersuasive.”Moseley, 76, was convicted in 2017 of racketeering, fraud and identity theft for crimes committed while he ran the company from 2004 to 2014.He was charged with abusing borrowers in New York and other states with interest rates exceeding — by many multiples — the maximum legal interest rates allowed in those states.Prosecutors said Moseley’s loan company exploited over 600,000 of the most financially vulnerable people in the country, and then Moseley dodged disgruntled customers and state regulators by operating from the Caribbean or New Zealand.At sentencing, a prosecutor said Moseley was "playing whack-a-mole with the regulators.”The sentencing judge read aloud excerpts from a business plan that served as a blueprint for Moseley’s businesses, saying: “If this is a business plan, then it’s a business plan for a criminal enterprise.”

KC man's conviction, sentence upheld in payday loan scam

Docking Institute poll offers ‘sobering’ snapshot of pandemic economics

By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2020/11/02/kansas-speaks-survey-covid-19-financially-stresses-one-fourth-of-households/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — One-fourth of 
Kansas households experienced serious problems during the COVID-19 
pandemic covering essential costs of food, utility and medical bills and
 dealing with obligations of loans and credit card debt.

That was among findings of
 a sweeping statewide survey by the Docking Institute of Public Affairs 
at Fort Hays State University conducted annually to check the pulse of 
Kansans on economic, political and social issues. Amid the coronavirus 
crisis factoring in the death of more than 1,000 Kansans, the survey was
 adjusted to include examination of the financial stability of 
individual households and to drill down on public attitudes about 
vaccines, masks and political leadership.

“Fairly sobering results,” Brett Zollinger, director of the Docking Institute, said on the Kansas Reflector podcast. “We have overall about 25%, around a quarter of Kansans, you know express that … at some&nbsp;point since the start of the coronavirus they’ve had a serious problem in affording food, affording medical care, paying utilities, paying credit cards and loan debt.”

Zollinger said more than 
19% had challenges dealing with car payments and nearly 19% struggled to
 make rent or mortgage payments.

In addition, 37% of 
respondents revealed household members had wages or hours reduced since 
the start of the outbreak in March. Twenty-three percent said an 
individual in the household had lost a job, 14% were furloughed and 13% 
compelled to take unpaid leave. The survey showed 5% said they had lost a
 business in the first six months of the pandemic.

The survey indicated these
 financial hardships were exprienced more frequently by women, people 
under age 45 and in households with annual incomes below $50,000, 
Zollinger said.

“It‘s not necessarily surprising, but something that we ought to&nbsp;I think keep an eye on for sure. Our elected officials at the state level&nbsp;need to know this and need to be thinking about it,” he said.

The 2020 edition of Kansas
 Speaks was conducted online from Sept. 21 to Oct. 1. A panel of 417 
adult residents of Kansas age 18 and older participated in the poll.

Zollinger said 93% of 
people involved in this survey said they wore a mask when they went into
 stores, three of 10 didn’t believe a face covering would alter course 
of coronavirus.

In addition, one third of 
people in the poll felt danger of the virus had been severely 
exaggerated. And 27% endorsed the idea of “herd immunity,” an idea 
challenged by medical professionals because it contemplats bulkd of the 
U.S. population contracting the virus and potentially overwhelming 
hospitals and escalating the death total.

“In one way, it’s heartening I suppose from a public health perspective,” he said. “Then potentially, you know, there’s some disturbing news there from a public health perspective, in a relatively small percentage who disagree.”

He said younger people 
were less likely to agree that a mask was necessary, but that group 
could have fewer secondary health issues making them vulnerable to 
COVID-19.

In terms of a vaccine for 
the coronavirus, 28% said they were unwilling to take the vaccine. 
Forty-one percent said they would get vaccinated when a treatment for 
the virus was approved. Nearly one-third of respondents were undecided 
on the subject.

The people responding to 
Fort Hays State University’s poll gave highest marks in terms of 
providing credible information during the pandemic to Anthony Fauci, an 
immunologist who has beemm director of the National Institute of Allergy
 and Infectious Diseases since 1984. In the survey, 51.5% said they 
strongly approved or approved of Fauci’s insights.

Other approval numbers in 
terms of COVID-19: Gov. Laura Kelly, 47.5%; President Donald Trump, 
42.9%; Kansas Legislature, 26.7%; and U.S. Congress, 16.9%. In terms of 
the job done by the respondent’s city leaders, 43.3% had a favorable 
view. That was slightly better than the 38.6% rating for county 
governments of those taking part in the survey.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604334238213.png" alt="Brett Zollinger, director of the Docking Institute of Public Affairs at Fort Hays State University, said the annual Kansas Speaks statewide survey chronicled household impact of COVID-19, attitudes about wearing a mask and who people trust with medical advice during the crisis. (Submitted to Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Brett Zollinger, director of the Docking Institute of Public Affairs at Fort Hays State University, said the annual Kansas Speaks statewide survey chronicled household impact of COVID-19, attitudes about wearing a mask and who people trust with medical advice during the crisis. (Submitted to Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Docking Institute poll offers ‘sobering’ snapshot of pandemic economics</h2>By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2020/11/02/kansas-speaks-survey-covid-19-financially-stresses-one-fourth-of-households/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — One-fourth of 
Kansas households experienced serious problems during the COVID-19 
pandemic covering essential costs of food, utility and medical bills and
 dealing with obligations of loans and credit card debt.That was among findings of
 a sweeping statewide survey by the Docking Institute of Public Affairs 
at Fort Hays State University conducted annually to check the pulse of 
Kansans on economic, political and social issues. Amid the coronavirus 
crisis factoring in the death of more than 1,000 Kansans, the survey was
 adjusted to include examination of the financial stability of 
individual households and to drill down on public attitudes about 
vaccines, masks and political leadership.“Fairly sobering results,” Brett Zollinger, director of the Docking Institute, said on the Kansas Reflector podcast. “We have overall about 25%, around a quarter of Kansans, you know express that … at some&nbsp;point since the start of the coronavirus they’ve had a serious problem in affording food, affording medical care, paying utilities, paying credit cards and loan debt.”Zollinger said more than 
19% had challenges dealing with car payments and nearly 19% struggled to
 make rent or mortgage payments.In addition, 37% of 
respondents revealed household members had wages or hours reduced since 
the start of the outbreak in March. Twenty-three percent said an 
individual in the household had lost a job, 14% were furloughed and 13% 
compelled to take unpaid leave. The survey showed 5% said they had lost a
 business in the first six months of the pandemic.The survey indicated these
 financial hardships were exprienced more frequently by women, people 
under age 45 and in households with annual incomes below $50,000, 
Zollinger said.“It‘s not necessarily surprising, but something that we ought to&nbsp;I think keep an eye on for sure. Our elected officials at the state level&nbsp;need to know this and need to be thinking about it,” he said.<div><iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/921726919&color=%232b7fb4&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe><div style="font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/kansas-reflector-podcast" title="Reflector Podcast" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">Reflector Podcast</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/kansas-reflector-podcast/survey-sheds-light-on-where-kansans-stand-on-major-issues" title="Survey sheds light on where Kansans stand on major issues" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">Survey sheds light on where Kansans stand on major issues</a></div></div>The 2020 edition of Kansas
 Speaks was conducted online from Sept. 21 to Oct. 1. A panel of 417 
adult residents of Kansas age 18 and older participated in the poll.Zollinger said 93% of 
people involved in this survey said they wore a mask when they went into
 stores, three of 10 didn’t believe a face covering would alter course 
of coronavirus.In addition, one third of 
people in the poll felt danger of the virus had been severely 
exaggerated. And 27% endorsed the idea of “herd immunity,” an idea 
challenged by medical professionals because it contemplats bulkd of the 
U.S. population contracting the virus and potentially overwhelming 
hospitals and escalating the death total.“In one way, it’s heartening I suppose from a public health perspective,” he said. “Then potentially, you know, there’s some disturbing news there from a public health perspective, in a relatively small percentage who disagree.”He said younger people 
were less likely to agree that a mask was necessary, but that group 
could have fewer secondary health issues making them vulnerable to 
COVID-19.In terms of a vaccine for 
the coronavirus, 28% said they were unwilling to take the vaccine. 
Forty-one percent said they would get vaccinated when a treatment for 
the virus was approved. Nearly one-third of respondents were undecided 
on the subject.The people responding to 
Fort Hays State University’s poll gave highest marks in terms of 
providing credible information during the pandemic to Anthony Fauci, an 
immunologist who has beemm director of the National Institute of Allergy
 and Infectious Diseases since 1984. In the survey, 51.5% said they 
strongly approved or approved of Fauci’s insights.Other approval numbers in 
terms of COVID-19: Gov. Laura Kelly, 47.5%; President Donald Trump, 
42.9%; Kansas Legislature, 26.7%; and U.S. Congress, 16.9%. In terms of 
the job done by the respondent’s city leaders, 43.3% had a favorable 
view. That was slightly better than the 38.6% rating for county 
governments of those taking part in the survey.

Survey: COVID-19 financially stresses 1/4 of Kan. households

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect after an incident at a mosque.

Just before 6p.m. on Friday, officers responded to a disturbance with a weapon call at the Masjid An Noor Mosque in the 3100 block of East 17th&nbsp;Street in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.

 Upon arrival, officers contacted a 53-year-old man who reported that a suspect later identified as 26-year-old Dustin Arterburn yelled racially insensitive comments and displayed a handgun to him before leaving in his vehicle.

Through the investigation, officers learned that the same suspect had previously wrote on social media concerning posters around the Islamic Society of Wichita located in the 6600 block of East 34th&nbsp;Street North. The incident was reported around the same time.

Police arrested Arterburn without incident at a residence in Derby and booked him on requested charges of aggravated assault and disorderly conduct.

Arterburn acted alone in these incidents and is not part of any network, according to Davidson. The cases will be presented to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604351900874.png" alt="ARTERBURN-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>ARTERBURN-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect after an incident at a mosque.Just before 6p.m. on Friday, officers responded to a disturbance with a weapon call at the Masjid An Noor Mosque in the 3100 block of East 17th&nbsp;Street in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson. Upon arrival, officers contacted a 53-year-old man who reported that a suspect later identified as 26-year-old Dustin Arterburn yelled racially insensitive comments and displayed a handgun to him before leaving in his vehicle.Through the investigation, officers learned that the same suspect had previously wrote on social media concerning posters around the Islamic Society of Wichita located in the 6600 block of East 34th&nbsp;Street North. The incident was reported around the same time.Police arrested Arterburn without incident at a residence in Derby and booked him on requested charges of aggravated assault and disorderly conduct.Arterburn acted alone in these incidents and is not part of any network, according to Davidson. The cases will be presented to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s office.

Police: Man displayed gun outside Kan. mosque

Out-of-state donations fuel record Kansas campaign with GOP control of Senate at stake

By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2020/11/03/u-s-senate-the-marshall-and-bollier-showdown-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Barbara Bollier 
and Roger Marshall both graduated from University of Kansas’ medical 
school, built careers as physicians in Kansas and ended up on the same 
red-state U.S. Senate ballot in a campaign colored by coronavirus.

They unexpectedly became 
featured players in the most expensive political contest in Kansas 
history. Campaign finance reports say they combined to raise at least 
$30.5 million. That would form a strip of $100 dollar bills laid 
end-to-end from Salina to Abilene, with several million dollars to 
spare. And the total excludes all the dark money pouring into the Kansas
 showdown, which became a second-tier thriller in the larger national 
struggle for operational control of the U.S. Senate.

All that cash bought the 
Kansas Republican and Democratic nominees a tidal waive of advertising 
and mailers. Some of the messaging was self-congratulatory, but the bulk
 was designed to attack and conquer. Bollier was effectively labeled an 
“abortion fanatic.” The idea was planted in voters’ minds Marshall was 
“deceptive” and “got caught lying.” Bollier was “extreme” on gun 
control, while Marshall engaged in “shady” hospital investments. Bollier
 would be a puppet of socialists in Washington, D.C., and Marshall a 
hack for interests willing to harm Kansans by repealing the Affordable 
Care Act signed by President Barack Obama.

The solid work and 
advocacy of the Mission Hills Democrat in the Kansas Legislature and of 
the Great Bend Republican in the U.S. House was lost amid all that 
shouting.

The toxic cloud got so 
thick folks rarely noticed a third person in the race, Libertarian Party
 nominee Jason Buckley. He’s a U.S. Navy veteran who lives in Overland 
Park and works as an IT contractor in the banking industry. He’ll get a 
slice of the vote, perhaps several percentage points.

“I am running for Senate 
because I believe no other U.S. senator or Senate candidate has ever 
understood that the government belongs to people. And, we are not 
government property,” Buckley said. “The purpose of government is to 
protect our rights. All people should be able to live their life however
 they choose as long as those choices don’t hurt others and don’t steal 
their property.”

Casting of votes in the 
Senate contest began in mid-October and comes to a close at 7 p.m. 
Tuesday. There will be an unofficial tally on election night, but final 
results won’t be affirmed for days. Polling indicated a close race for 
the seat being vacated by retiring U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts. The Bollier 
and Marshall campaigns have weighed contingency plans if the margin was 
narrow. A Kansas recount is a possibility, especially if the balance of 
power in the U.S. Senate was still in play.

Such a competitive race 
for U.S. Senate in Kansas was inconceivable in 2016 after President 
Donald Trump dismantled Democrat Hillary Clinton by more than 20 
percentage points. In the past 25 years, no Democratic Senate candidate 
in Kansas has surpassed 44% in the general election.

Bollier, 62, anchored her 
campaign with a pledge to fight for better access to affordable health 
care and to continue her commitment to quality public education. She 
promised to be an independent voice in the U.S. Senate and work on a 
bipartisan basis with her colleagues. A Republican for four decades, 
Bollier changed her party affiliation to Democrat in 2018.

During the campaign, 
Bollier accused Marshall of running a private, for-profit hospital in 
Great Bend that contributed to closure of the community’s nonprofit 
hospital. She accused Marshall of pushing legislation beneficial to his 
family’s investment interests in health care rather than seeking 
bipartisan reforms to support rural hospitals. She said he sided with 
business and political interests keen to discriminate against the 
400,000 Kansans with a pre-existing medical condition.

“Kansas hasn’t elected a 
Democart to the Senate in 88 years,” said Bollier, who sought to be the 
first woman doctor elected to the U.S. Senate. “This election, we’re not
 just making history. We’re fighting for affordable health care, working
 toward unity and bringing along integrity.”

She didn’t complain relentlessly about Marshall’s affinity for Trump, given the GOP president’s standing in Kansas.

Former Republican U.S. 
Sen. Nancy Kassebaum and former Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius 
endorsed Bollier’s campaign for the Senate.

“Barbara has the 
character, know how and compassion to represent all communities in our 
state,” Kassebaum said. “Above all, Barbara shares my belief in working 
with members of both parties to solve problems and get things done. I 
believe achieving bipartisanship and cooperation in the U.S. Senate is 
still possible.”

Sebelius, who served as 
secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the
 Obama administration, said the U.S. Senate required people who 
understood and respected the science of public health.

“Not just to get through 
this pandemic, but to deal with climate change,” Sebelius said. “There 
has never been a better time to have a candidate like Barbara Bollier.”

Bollier, who was elected 
to the Kansas House in 2010 and the Kansas Senate in 2016, had token 
opposition in the August primary. She raised an astonishing $13.5 
million in the third quarter of 2020, and $24.4 million during her 
campaign for the Senate. In contrast, Marshall’s finance reports show he
 attracted $5.9 million in contributions for his Senate bid.

Marshall, 60, said Kansans
 would be mistaken to swallow the fiction of Bollier as a political 
moderate. He said the Democratic nominee would oppose conservative 
appointees to the U.S. Supreme Court, gave every indication she 
supported late-term abortions, would side with Democrats intent on 
raising taxes and would fall in line behind Democratic Sen. Chuck 
Schumer of New York.

Marshall, who has 
represented the largely rural 1st District in Congress since 2017, said 
Bollier was out of touch with common-sense Kansans. He pointed to her 
praise of strict Australian laws that forced owners of 700,000 guns to 
sell them to the government in the 1990s. He said she wasn’t capable of 
understanding needs of the dominant industry of agriculture.

“Barbara Bollier pretends 
to be a moderate, an independent,” Marshall said. “She calls 
confiscating weapons an ‘amazing thing.’ She believes and supports 
late-term abortion. She wants to give Supreme Court justices a religious
 test. She’s too extreme for Kansas.”

Marshall is intrinsically 
tied to Trump in terms of COVID-19 — mirroring the president’s views on 
wearing a mask during the pandemic, taking hydroxychloroquine to ward 
off the virus and urging businesses to stay open despite risk of a virus
 that has killed more than 1,000 Kansans. The president’s popularity has
 waned since 2016, but his coattails remain long. There’s little doubt 
Kansas will support Trump’s re-election.

U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran and
 Roberts, both Repubicans, and former U.S. Sen. Robert Dole endorsed 
Marshall’s candidacy. Marshall survived a crowded GOP primary in August,
 with assistance from the National Republican Senatorial Committee, 
which openly sought to derail the campaign for Kansas Secretary of State
 Kris Kobach. Marshall earned 40% of the primary vote while losing only 
one county west of Emporia and racking up a double-digit advantage in 
populous Sedgwick County.

“It is more important than
 ever that Republicans maintain the majority in the U.S. Senate,” said 
Moran, a reflection of apprehension Democratic presidential candidate 
Joe Biden could beat Trump. “A Republican Senate stands as a firewall to
 stop damaging liberal and socialist policies from becoming law.”

Dole, the 97-year-old 
native of Russell, began representing Kansans in Washington 60 years ago
 and was the GOP’s presidential nominee in 1996.

“I know Dr. Roger 
Marshall,” Dole said. “And I trust him. He will continue our state’s 
proud tradition of common sense leadership and results. This race 
presents as clear a contrast as any I’ve seen.”

Roberts, who declined to seek re-election in 2020, offered this closing advice: “Take it from Bob, and vote for Roger.”

Tim Carpenter has reported on Kansas for 35 years. He covered the Capitol for 16 years at the Topeka Capital-Journal and previously worked for the Lawrence Journal-World and United Press International.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604086469655.png" alt="Roger Marshall. Photo by Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector" />
 <figcaption>Roger Marshall. Photo by Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Out-of-state donations fuel record Kansas campaign with GOP control of Senate at stake</h2>By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2020/11/03/u-s-senate-the-marshall-and-bollier-showdown-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Barbara Bollier 
and Roger Marshall both graduated from University of Kansas’ medical 
school, built careers as physicians in Kansas and ended up on the same 
red-state U.S. Senate ballot in a campaign colored by coronavirus.They unexpectedly became 
featured players in the most expensive political contest in Kansas 
history. Campaign finance reports say they combined to raise at least 
$30.5 million. That would form a strip of $100 dollar bills laid 
end-to-end from Salina to Abilene, with several million dollars to 
spare. And the total excludes all the dark money pouring into the Kansas
 showdown, which became a second-tier thriller in the larger national 
struggle for operational control of the U.S. Senate.All that cash bought the 
Kansas Republican and Democratic nominees a tidal waive of advertising 
and mailers. Some of the messaging was self-congratulatory, but the bulk
 was designed to attack and conquer. Bollier was effectively labeled an 
“abortion fanatic.” The idea was planted in voters’ minds Marshall was 
“deceptive” and “got caught lying.” Bollier was “extreme” on gun 
control, while Marshall engaged in “shady” hospital investments. Bollier
 would be a puppet of socialists in Washington, D.C., and Marshall a 
hack for interests willing to harm Kansans by repealing the Affordable 
Care Act signed by President Barack Obama.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/10/1604086532586.png" alt="Barbara Bollier. Photo by Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector" />
 <figcaption>Barbara Bollier. Photo by Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector</figcaption>
 </figure>The solid work and 
advocacy of the Mission Hills Democrat in the Kansas Legislature and of 
the Great Bend Republican in the U.S. House was lost amid all that 
shouting.The toxic cloud got so 
thick folks rarely noticed a third person in the race, Libertarian Party
 nominee Jason Buckley. He’s a U.S. Navy veteran who lives in Overland 
Park and works as an IT contractor in the banking industry. He’ll get a 
slice of the vote, perhaps several percentage points.“I am running for Senate 
because I believe no other U.S. senator or Senate candidate has ever 
understood that the government belongs to people. And, we are not 
government property,” Buckley said. “The purpose of government is to 
protect our rights. All people should be able to live their life however
 they choose as long as those choices don’t hurt others and don’t steal 
their property.”Casting of votes in the 
Senate contest began in mid-October and comes to a close at 7 p.m. 
Tuesday. There will be an unofficial tally on election night, but final 
results won’t be affirmed for days. Polling indicated a close race for 
the seat being vacated by retiring U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts. The Bollier 
and Marshall campaigns have weighed contingency plans if the margin was 
narrow. A Kansas recount is a possibility, especially if the balance of 
power in the U.S. Senate was still in play.Such a competitive race 
for U.S. Senate in Kansas was inconceivable in 2016 after President 
Donald Trump dismantled Democrat Hillary Clinton by more than 20 
percentage points. In the past 25 years, no Democratic Senate candidate 
in Kansas has surpassed 44% in the general election.<h2>Bollier’s closing</h2>Bollier, 62, anchored her 
campaign with a pledge to fight for better access to affordable health 
care and to continue her commitment to quality public education. She 
promised to be an independent voice in the U.S. Senate and work on a 
bipartisan basis with her colleagues. A Republican for four decades, 
Bollier changed her party affiliation to Democrat in 2018.During the campaign, 
Bollier accused Marshall of running a private, for-profit hospital in 
Great Bend that contributed to closure of the community’s nonprofit 
hospital. She accused Marshall of pushing legislation beneficial to his 
family’s investment interests in health care rather than seeking 
bipartisan reforms to support rural hospitals. She said he sided with 
business and political interests keen to discriminate against the 
400,000 Kansans with a pre-existing medical condition.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604422556227.jpeg" alt="U.S. Senate candidate Barbara Bollier, a state senator from Mission Hills, says she will be an independent voice for Kansas in Washington, D.C. and a keen advocate for greater access to affordable health care. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>U.S. Senate candidate Barbara Bollier, a state senator from Mission Hills, says she will be an independent voice for Kansas in Washington, D.C. and a keen advocate for greater access to affordable health care. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>“Kansas hasn’t elected a 
Democart to the Senate in 88 years,” said Bollier, who sought to be the 
first woman doctor elected to the U.S. Senate. “This election, we’re not
 just making history. We’re fighting for affordable health care, working
 toward unity and bringing along integrity.”She didn’t complain relentlessly about Marshall’s affinity for Trump, given the GOP president’s standing in Kansas.Former Republican U.S. 
Sen. Nancy Kassebaum and former Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius 
endorsed Bollier’s campaign for the Senate.“Barbara has the 
character, know how and compassion to represent all communities in our 
state,” Kassebaum said. “Above all, Barbara shares my belief in working 
with members of both parties to solve problems and get things done. I 
believe achieving bipartisanship and cooperation in the U.S. Senate is 
still possible.”Sebelius, who served as 
secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the
 Obama administration, said the U.S. Senate required people who 
understood and respected the science of public health.“Not just to get through 
this pandemic, but to deal with climate change,” Sebelius said. “There 
has never been a better time to have a candidate like Barbara Bollier.”Bollier, who was elected 
to the Kansas House in 2010 and the Kansas Senate in 2016, had token 
opposition in the August primary. She raised an astonishing $13.5 
million in the third quarter of 2020, and $24.4 million during her 
campaign for the Senate. In contrast, Marshall’s finance reports show he
 attracted $5.9 million in contributions for his Senate bid.<h2>Marshall’s pitch</h2>Marshall, 60, said Kansans
 would be mistaken to swallow the fiction of Bollier as a political 
moderate. He said the Democratic nominee would oppose conservative 
appointees to the U.S. Supreme Court, gave every indication she 
supported late-term abortions, would side with Democrats intent on 
raising taxes and would fall in line behind Democratic Sen. Chuck 
Schumer of New York.Marshall, who has 
represented the largely rural 1st District in Congress since 2017, said 
Bollier was out of touch with common-sense Kansans. He pointed to her 
praise of strict Australian laws that forced owners of 700,000 guns to 
sell them to the government in the 1990s. He said she wasn’t capable of 
understanding needs of the dominant industry of agriculture.“Barbara Bollier pretends 
to be a moderate, an independent,” Marshall said. “She calls 
confiscating weapons an ‘amazing thing.’ She believes and supports 
late-term abortion. She wants to give Supreme Court justices a religious
 test. She’s too extreme for Kansas.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604422587930.jpeg" alt="U.S. Sens. Pat Roberts and Jerry Moran, Kansas Republicans, joined with former U.S. Sen. Robert Dole to endorse GOP U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall for Roberts’ seat in the U.S. Senate. (Submitted/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>U.S. Sens. Pat Roberts and Jerry Moran, Kansas Republicans, joined with former U.S. Sen. Robert Dole to endorse GOP U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall for Roberts’ seat in the U.S. Senate. (Submitted/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>Marshall is intrinsically 
tied to Trump in terms of COVID-19 — mirroring the president’s views on 
wearing a mask during the pandemic, taking hydroxychloroquine to ward 
off the virus and urging businesses to stay open despite risk of a virus
 that has killed more than 1,000 Kansans. The president’s popularity has
 waned since 2016, but his coattails remain long. There’s little doubt 
Kansas will support Trump’s re-election.U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran and
 Roberts, both Repubicans, and former U.S. Sen. Robert Dole endorsed 
Marshall’s candidacy. Marshall survived a crowded GOP primary in August,
 with assistance from the National Republican Senatorial Committee, 
which openly sought to derail the campaign for Kansas Secretary of State
 Kris Kobach. Marshall earned 40% of the primary vote while losing only 
one county west of Emporia and racking up a double-digit advantage in 
populous Sedgwick County.“It is more important than
 ever that Republicans maintain the majority in the U.S. Senate,” said 
Moran, a reflection of apprehension Democratic presidential candidate 
Joe Biden could beat Trump. “A Republican Senate stands as a firewall to
 stop damaging liberal and socialist policies from becoming law.”Dole, the 97-year-old 
native of Russell, began representing Kansans in Washington 60 years ago
 and was the GOP’s presidential nominee in 1996.“I know Dr. Roger 
Marshall,” Dole said. “And I trust him. He will continue our state’s 
proud tradition of common sense leadership and results. This race 
presents as clear a contrast as any I’ve seen.”Roberts, who declined to seek re-election in 2020, offered this closing advice: “Take it from Bob, and vote for Roger.”Tim Carpenter has reported on Kansas for 35 years. He covered the Capitol for 16 years at the Topeka Capital-Journal and previously worked for the Lawrence Journal-World and United Press International.

Marshall, Bollier close out Kansas barn burner for U.S. Senate

TOPEKA, KAN. (AP) — A&nbsp;man sentenced to life in prison for the beating death of a 2-year-old Topeka boy in 1995 has been granted parole.

Glenn Allen Heath Jr., 46, was serving a life sentence after being convicted for first-degree murder in the death of his then-fiancee’s stepson, Cain Baker, at the couple's home in Topeka.

An autopsy determined the boy died from abdominal punctures.

Heath will be released from Lansing Correctional Facility on or after Dec. 1 if an approved plan is in place, Carol Pitts, spokeswoman for the&nbsp;Kansas&nbsp;Department of Corrections, said Monday.

The Kansas Prison Review Board had rejected Heath's previous parole applications in 2010, 2015 and 2018.

Supporters of Heath told the board at past public hearings that he has no prison disciplinary violations, completed five prison programs, has a strong support system and a job offer.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604338772344.png" alt="Heath photo KDOC" />
 <figcaption>Heath photo KDOC</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, KAN. (AP) — A&nbsp;man sentenced to life in prison for the beating death of a 2-year-old Topeka boy in 1995 has been granted parole.Glenn Allen Heath Jr., 46, was serving a life sentence after being convicted for first-degree murder in the death of his then-fiancee’s stepson, Cain Baker, at the couple's home in Topeka.An autopsy determined the boy died from abdominal punctures.Heath will be released from Lansing Correctional Facility on or after Dec. 1 if an approved plan is in place, Carol Pitts, spokeswoman for the&nbsp;Kansas&nbsp;Department of Corrections, said Monday.The Kansas Prison Review Board had rejected Heath's previous parole applications in 2010, 2015 and 2018.Supporters of Heath told the board at past public hearings that he has no prison disciplinary violations, completed five prison programs, has a strong support system and a job offer.

Man who killed Kan. toddler set for release from prison

By DAN MARGOLIES <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-11-02/government-ordered-to-pay-damages-to-two-veterans-abused-at-the-leavenworth-va">Kansas News Service</a>

A federal judge has ruled in favor of two veterans who sued the 
government for medical malpractice after claiming they were subjected to
 unnecessary genital exams while they were patients at the Leavenworth 
VA.

In separate decisions Monday, U.S. District Judge Daniel 
Crabtree ruled that VA personnel should have “fairly foreseen” the 
wrongful conduct by physician assistant Mark Wisner but failed to do so.

Multiple patients had complained to the VA about Wisner’s conduct over the years he treated both veterans.

Wisner
 was convicted of aggravated sexual battery and aggravated criminal 
sodomy in 2017 and sentenced to nearly 16 years in prison.

Crabtree
 awarded a total of just over $538,000 in damages to one of the veterans
 and just over $1.5 million in damages to the other.

The awards 
fell short of the millions each man had sought but still marked 
victories in hard-fought trials requiring them to prove that Wisner was 
acting within the scope of his employment.

“These cases have 
touched me in a way that’s probably different from any other case I’ve 
dealt with in my career, probably because I’m a veteran myself and my 
heart goes out to these guys,” said the attorney for both men, Danny 
Thomas.

“Obviously the way the VA treated them was horrible. But 
also the way the Department of Justice has treated them throughout this 
litigation has just been inhumane. And to finally get justice for these 
guys, it’s a feeling I can’t describe how relieved and happy I am.”

A
 spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Kansas, which defended the 
cases, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Both cases were tried without a jury before Crabtree via Zoom video earlier this year.

Wisner
 is thought to have abused as many as 100 military veterans at the 
Leavenworth VA. More than 80 of them settled their lawsuits last year 
for a total of $7 million.

But the two veterans who prevailed against the government on Monday held out and chose to take their chances by going to trial.

The
 government never disputed that Wisner sexually molested veterans of 
America’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. But it claimed it shouldn’t be 
held accountable for his conduct because it was outside the scope of his
 employment.

But Crabtree said the test for that was not whether 
the VA authorized Wisner’s conduct but rather if it was foreseeable. And
 Crabtree ruled that it clearly was in both cases.

“The Veterans 
Health Administration (VHA) required a centralized and comprehensive 
policy on reporting and tracking allegations of sexual misconduct at VHA
 facilities (among other things),” Crabtree wrote in his findings of 
fact in both cases. “The Leavenworth VA wholly failed to comply with 
this directive.”

In fact, Crabtree found, Wisner’s first-line 
supervisor was unaware he was supposed to review Wisner’s charts and 
didn’t bother to monitor his activities.

Wisner was the sole primary care provider in a clinic with as many as 1,000 patients.

Both
 veterans asked Crabtree to order the government to pay for treatment of
 their PTSD and for the anticipated costs of private health care, 
arguing that they shouldn’t have to return to the VA.

In the case 
of the first veteran, Crabtree awarded $228,213 to pay for his PTSD 
treatment but not the anticipated costs of private care, finding he had 
not tied that claim to his injuries. In the case of the second veteran, 
Crabtree awarded him nearly $1.1 million for both the cost of PTSD 
treatment and the anticipated costs of private care.

Both veterans
 also sought non-economic damages. The first veteran had sought more 
than $2.3 million but Crabtree awarded him $310,000. The second sought 
$5.4 million; Crabtree awarded him $430,000.

Thomas, their attorney, is not through trying cases against the government. Seven more remain on Crabtree’s docket.

Thomas,
 who in his opening statements called the Wisner episode the largest 
case of sexual abuse in VA history, said patients with combat PTSD were 
sexually molested over and over right under the noses of the VA.

Compounding
 their trauma, he said, was the Justice Department’s willingness to 
attack their character during the trials and call them liars.

“The
 Department of Justice says we seek to honor and respect our veterans. 
No, you don't. No, you don’t, because they’ve been treated like garbage 
by our government, absolute garbage,” Thomas said.

Dan Margolies is senior reporter and editor at KCUR. He can be reached by email at dan@kcur.org or on Twitter @DanMargolies.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604356130442.png" alt="Mark Wisner worked as a physician assistant at the Dwight D. Eisenhower VA Medical Center in Leavenworth, Kansas, pictured here. He is now serving a prison sentence of nearly 16 years. Leavenworth VA" />
 <figcaption>Mark Wisner worked as a physician assistant at the Dwight D. Eisenhower VA Medical Center in Leavenworth, Kansas, pictured here. He is now serving a prison sentence of nearly 16 years. Leavenworth VA</figcaption>
 </figure>By DAN MARGOLIES <a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-11-02/government-ordered-to-pay-damages-to-two-veterans-abused-at-the-leavenworth-va">Kansas News Service</a>A federal judge has ruled in favor of two veterans who sued the 
government for medical malpractice after claiming they were subjected to
 unnecessary genital exams while they were patients at the Leavenworth 
VA.In separate decisions Monday, U.S. District Judge Daniel 
Crabtree ruled that VA personnel should have “fairly foreseen” the 
wrongful conduct by physician assistant Mark Wisner but failed to do so.Multiple patients had complained to the VA about Wisner’s conduct over the years he treated both veterans.Wisner
 was convicted of aggravated sexual battery and aggravated criminal 
sodomy in 2017 and sentenced to nearly 16 years in prison.Crabtree
 awarded a total of just over $538,000 in damages to one of the veterans
 and just over $1.5 million in damages to the other.The awards 
fell short of the millions each man had sought but still marked 
victories in hard-fought trials requiring them to prove that Wisner was 
acting within the scope of his employment.“These cases have 
touched me in a way that’s probably different from any other case I’ve 
dealt with in my career, probably because I’m a veteran myself and my 
heart goes out to these guys,” said the attorney for both men, Danny 
Thomas.“Obviously the way the VA treated them was horrible. But 
also the way the Department of Justice has treated them throughout this 
litigation has just been inhumane. And to finally get justice for these 
guys, it’s a feeling I can’t describe how relieved and happy I am.”A
 spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Kansas, which defended the 
cases, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Both cases were tried without a jury before Crabtree via Zoom video earlier this year.Wisner
 is thought to have abused as many as 100 military veterans at the 
Leavenworth VA. More than 80 of them settled their lawsuits last year 
for a total of $7 million.But the two veterans who prevailed against the government on Monday held out and chose to take their chances by going to trial.The
 government never disputed that Wisner sexually molested veterans of 
America’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. But it claimed it shouldn’t be 
held accountable for his conduct because it was outside the scope of his
 employment.But Crabtree said the test for that was not whether 
the VA authorized Wisner’s conduct but rather if it was foreseeable. And
 Crabtree ruled that it clearly was in both cases.“The Veterans 
Health Administration (VHA) required a centralized and comprehensive 
policy on reporting and tracking allegations of sexual misconduct at VHA
 facilities (among other things),” Crabtree wrote in his findings of 
fact in both cases. “The Leavenworth VA wholly failed to comply with 
this directive.”In fact, Crabtree found, Wisner’s first-line 
supervisor was unaware he was supposed to review Wisner’s charts and 
didn’t bother to monitor his activities.Wisner was the sole primary care provider in a clinic with as many as 1,000 patients.Both
 veterans asked Crabtree to order the government to pay for treatment of
 their PTSD and for the anticipated costs of private health care, 
arguing that they shouldn’t have to return to the VA.In the case 
of the first veteran, Crabtree awarded $228,213 to pay for his PTSD 
treatment but not the anticipated costs of private care, finding he had 
not tied that claim to his injuries. In the case of the second veteran, 
Crabtree awarded him nearly $1.1 million for both the cost of PTSD 
treatment and the anticipated costs of private care.Both veterans
 also sought non-economic damages. The first veteran had sought more 
than $2.3 million but Crabtree awarded him $310,000. The second sought 
$5.4 million; Crabtree awarded him $430,000.Thomas, their attorney, is not through trying cases against the government. Seven more remain on Crabtree’s docket.Thomas,
 who in his opening statements called the Wisner episode the largest 
case of sexual abuse in VA history, said patients with combat PTSD were 
sexually molested over and over right under the noses of the VA.Compounding
 their trauma, he said, was the Justice Department’s willingness to 
attack their character during the trials and call them liars.“The
 Department of Justice says we seek to honor and respect our veterans. 
No, you don't. No, you don’t, because they’ve been treated like garbage 
by our government, absolute garbage,” Thomas said.Dan Margolies is senior reporter and editor at KCUR. He can be reached by email at dan@kcur.org or on Twitter @DanMargolies.&nbsp;

Government ordered to pay veterans abused at Leavenworth VA

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating vandalism at the WWI Museum in Kansas City. 

The museum at 2 Memorial Drive is being used as a polling place.&nbsp; Early Tuesday, workers found spray paint on stonework near the entrance that said, "don't vote and fight for revolution."

In a social media response, the museum said, "We are proud to be a polling location and condemn this attempt at voter intimidation. Our democracy is something that generations of veterans, including those in WWI, have fought to defend. We hope you’ll vote today and make your voice heard."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604412731214.png" alt="Photo courtesy National WWI Museum" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy National WWI Museum</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating vandalism at the WWI Museum in Kansas City. The museum at 2 Memorial Drive is being used as a polling place.&nbsp; Early Tuesday, workers found spray paint on stonework near the entrance that said, "don't vote and fight for revolution." In a social media response, the museum said, "We are proud to be a polling location and condemn this attempt at voter intimidation. Our democracy is something that generations of veterans, including those in WWI, have fought to defend. We hope you’ll vote today and make your voice heard."Police reported no additional details.

Polling location, National WWI Museum in KC vandalized

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas has had its most competitive U.S. Senate race in decades, though President Donald Trump is expected to carry the state again and voters appear likely to elect two new Republican congressmen.

The marquee race heading into Tuesday’s election was the Senate contest between Republican Roger Marshall, a two-term congressman for western and central Kansas, and Democrat Barbara Bollier, a Kansas City-area state senator. The race was the most expensive in Kansas history, with Bollier setting a record for any Kansas political race by raising more than $25 million to Marshall’s $6.5 million and outside groups pouring in $41 million on advertising, the bulk of it from GOP groups backing Marshall.

The two are vying for the seat held by retiring four-term Republican Sen. Pat Roberts, and two of the state’s four U.S. House seats were also up for grabs this year.

Polls were to open statewide at 7 a.m. and were to stay open until 7 p.m. local time.

Here’s what to know about the election.

Democrats have not won a Senate race in Kansas since 1932, but the Marshall-Bollier contest represented their best shot since 1974, when then-Republican Sen. Bob Dole won reelection by less than 2 percentage points following the Watergate scandal that forced President Richard Nixon from office.

Bollier, a former lifelong moderate Republican who switched parties at the end of 2018, was one of several Democratic candidates around the country who attracted millions of dollars in contributions from outside their home states as the party tried to take control of the Senate. Bollier pitched herself as an independent centrist.

Marshall and his allies attacked Bollier for her strong support of abortion rights and gun control measures, and he hoped wavering GOP voters would drift back to the fold, as they had in past elections.

Trump’s hold on Kansas’ six electoral votes seemed secure heading into Election Day, given that no Democratic presidential candidate has carried the state since incumbent Lyndon Johnson in his 1964 national landslide. Trump won Kansas by nearly 21 percentage points over Hillary Clinton in 2016.

But with Trump’s support in suburban areas eroded, Democrats at leased hoped that presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden would do better than Clinton, particularly in the Kansas City area. Democrat Barack Obama topped 41% in 2008, and Jimmy Carter approached 45% in 1976.

The state’s top elections official forecast a 70% turnout, predicting that a record 1.35 million of the state’s 1.94 million registered would cast ballots. The coronavirus pandemic led to an unusual surge in early voting, with more than 770,000 votes cast before Election Day by mail or in person.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas has had its most competitive U.S. Senate race in decades, though President Donald Trump is expected to carry the state again and voters appear likely to elect two new Republican congressmen.The marquee race heading into Tuesday’s election was the Senate contest between Republican Roger Marshall, a two-term congressman for western and central Kansas, and Democrat Barbara Bollier, a Kansas City-area state senator. The race was the most expensive in Kansas history, with Bollier setting a record for any Kansas political race by raising more than $25 million to Marshall’s $6.5 million and outside groups pouring in $41 million on advertising, the bulk of it from GOP groups backing Marshall.The two are vying for the seat held by retiring four-term Republican Sen. Pat Roberts, and two of the state’s four U.S. House seats were also up for grabs this year.Polls were to open statewide at 7 a.m. and were to stay open until 7 p.m. local time.Here’s what to know about the election.HOT SENATE RACEDemocrats have not won a Senate race in Kansas since 1932, but the Marshall-Bollier contest represented their best shot since 1974, when then-Republican Sen. Bob Dole won reelection by less than 2 percentage points following the Watergate scandal that forced President Richard Nixon from office.Bollier, a former lifelong moderate Republican who switched parties at the end of 2018, was one of several Democratic candidates around the country who attracted millions of dollars in contributions from outside their home states as the party tried to take control of the Senate. Bollier pitched herself as an independent centrist.Marshall and his allies attacked Bollier for her strong support of abortion rights and gun control measures, and he hoped wavering GOP voters would drift back to the fold, as they had in past elections.PRESIDENTIAL RACETrump’s hold on Kansas’ six electoral votes seemed secure heading into Election Day, given that no Democratic presidential candidate has carried the state since incumbent Lyndon Johnson in his 1964 national landslide. Trump won Kansas by nearly 21 percentage points over Hillary Clinton in 2016.But with Trump’s support in suburban areas eroded, Democrats at leased hoped that presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden would do better than Clinton, particularly in the Kansas City area. Democrat Barack Obama topped 41% in 2008, and Jimmy Carter approached 45% in 1976.RECORD NUMBERS EXPECTEDThe state’s top elections official forecast a 70% turnout, predicting that a record 1.35 million of the state’s 1.94 million registered would cast ballots. The coronavirus pandemic led to an unusual surge in early voting, with more than 770,000 votes cast before Election Day by mail or in person.NEW HOUSE MEMBERSMarshall’s decision to run for the Senate opened up his seat representing the sprawling 1st Congressional District in central and western Kansas. The district is among the safest in the country for Republicans, making it an near-certainty that former Lt. Gov. Tracey Mann, a commercial real estate broker from Salina, would defeat Democrat Kali Barnett, a Garden City elementary school teacher.Republicans also were expected to retain the 2nd District seat representing eastern Kansas after State Treasurer Jake LaTurner ousted Rep. Steve Watkins in the GOP primary. Watkins was charged with three felonies for allegedly listing a postal box at a UPS Inc. store as his residence for voter registration late last year. LaTurner was vying for the seat Tuesday with Topeka’s Democratic mayor, Michelle De La Isla.INCUMBENTS EXPECTED TO WINThe lone Democrat in the state’s congressional delegation, freshman Rep. Sharice Davids, was expected to defeat Republican Amanda Adkins and win a second term representing the state’s 3rd Congressional District, in the Kansas City area. Adkins is an executive on leave from medical computer systems firm Cerner Corp. and a former Kansas Republican Party chairwoman who has political ties to unpopular former GOP Gov. Sam Brownback. After winning the seat in 2018, Davids positioned herself as a centrist in Congress. Trump lost the district narrowly in 2016.In the 4th District in the Wichita area, Republican Rep. Ron Estes was expected to win reelection easily.___