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2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas

The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas were held on November 6, 2018, to elect the four U.S. representatives from the state of Kansas, one from each of the state's four congressional districts.


The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas were held on November 6, 2018, to elect the four U.S. representatives from the state of Kansas, one from each of the state's four congressional districts.

The state congressional delegation changed from a 4–0 Republican majority to a 3–1 Republican majority, the first time the Democrats had won a house seat in the state since 2008.

Results of the 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas by district:

DistrictRepublicanDemocraticOthersTotalResult
District 1153,08268.15%71,55831.85%00.00%224,640100%Republican hold
District 2126,09847.64%123,85946.79%14,7315.57%264,688100%Republican hold
District 3139,76243.91%170,51853.57%8,0212.52%318,301100%Democratic gain
District 4144,24859.44%98,44540.56%00.00%242,693100%Republican hold
Total563,19053.62%464,38044.21%22,7522.17%1,050,322100%

The first district is one of the largest geographically in the nation, encompassing more than half of the area of the state. It is located in western and northern Kansas, and includes the cities of Manhattan and Salina. Republican Roger Marshall won this district in 2016 by defeating the incumbent congressman, Tim Huelskamp, in the Republican primary 57% to 43% and winning the general election.

Tim Huelskamp filed a statement of candidacy with the FEC on October 17, 2016, to run for this seat in 2018. Huelskamp made no announcement about whether he was considering a potential rematch with Marshall, but sent a fundraising email attacking Marshall and soliciting donations. On June 29, 2017, it was announced that Huelskamp had accepted a position with The Heartland Institute, a conservative think tank in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

  • Roger Marshall, incumbent U.S. representative

  • Nick Reinecker

  • Tim Huelskamp, former U.S. representative

PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican64,84378.7
Republican17,59321.3
82,436100.0
  • Alan LaPolice, former school administrator, Republican candidate for this seat in 2014 and an independent candidate in 2016
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic17,195100.0
17,195100.0
SourceRankingAs of
The Cook Political ReportSafe RNovember 5, 2018
Inside ElectionsSafe RNovember 5, 2018
Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RNovember 5, 2018
RCPSafe RNovember 5, 2018
Daily KosSafe RNovember 5, 2018
538Safe RNovember 7, 2018
CNNSafe ROctober 31, 2018
PoliticoSafe RNovember 4, 2018
Poll sourceDate(s)administeredSamplesizeMargin oferrorRogerMarshall (R)AlanLaPolice (D)Undecided
Emerson CollegeOctober 26–28, 2018221± 6.6%51%36%13%
Jayhawk Consulting (D-LaPolice)October 22–23, 2018600± 4.2%42%38%20%
Remington (R-Marshall)October 8–9, 20181,432± 2.6%60%26%14%
Emerson CollegeSeptember 26–28, 2018193± 6.8%44%17%35%
Jayhawk Consulting (D-LaPolice)September 21–22, 2018400± 4.9%44%33%23%
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican153,08268.1
Democratic71,55831.9
224,640100.0

This district is located in eastern Kansas and is anchored by the state capital, Topeka. It also includes the city of Lawrence. Incumbent Republican Lynn Jenkins had represented the district since 2009. In 2008, Jenkins defeated former six-term District congressman Jim Ryun in the primary, and incumbent Democrat Nancy Boyda in the general election. Jenkins was re-elected with 61% of the vote in 2016.

Jenkins had considered running for governor instead of re-election, but decided to retire and not run for any office in 2018.

Army veteran Steve Watkins led the Republican primary campaign, securing the endorsement of President Donald Trump. However, his background and residency were challenged by fellow Republicans, citing inaccuracies in claims on his website and in his campaign, as well as his absence from the district.

  • Steve Watkins, Army veteran, dog racer and engineer

  • Vernon Fields, Basehor city councilman

  • Steve Fitzgerald, state senator

  • Kevin Jones, state representative

  • Doug Mays, former Kansas House speaker

  • Dennis Pyle, state senator

  • Caryn Tyson, state senator

  • Matt Bevens

  • Tyler Tannahill

Results by county:   Watkins   20–30%   30–40%   Tyson   20–30%   30–40%   40–50%   50–60%   Fitzgerald   40–50%   Pyle   30–40%   40–50%

PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican20,05226.5
Republican17,74923.5
Republican11,20114.8
Republican9,22712.2
Republican9,12612.1
Republican6,2218.2
Republican1,9872.6
75,563100.0

Former Kansas State House Minority Leader and 2014 gubernatorial nominee Paul Davis ran unopposed. When Davis ran against incumbent governor Sam Brownback in 2014, he had carried the 2nd district.

  • Paul Davis, former Minority Leader of the Kansas House of Representatives and nominee for governor in 2014

  • Nathan Schmidt

PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic38,846100.0
38,846100.0
  • Kelly Standley, business developer
No.DateHostModeratorLinkRepublicanDemocratic
Oct. 18, 2018WIBW-TVMelissa BrunnerRalph HippShawn WheatC-SPANPP
Poll sourceDate(s)administeredSamplesizeMargin oferrorSteveWatkins (R)PaulDavis (D)KellyStandley (L)OtherUndecided
NYT Upshot/Siena CollegeOctober 27–30, 2018501± 4.8%37%41%7%15%
Change Research (D)October 27–29, 201890245%44%
Emerson CollegeOctober 26–28, 2018231± 6.5%48%41%8%
Emerson CollegeSeptember 26–28, 2018243± 6.4%31%35%4%3%28%
NYT Upshot/Siena CollegeSeptember 13–15, 2018500± 4.8%44%45%12%
SourceRankingAs of
The Cook Political ReportTossupNovember 5, 2018
Inside ElectionsTossupNovember 5, 2018
Sabato's Crystal BallLean D (flip)November 5, 2018
RCPTossupNovember 5, 2018
Daily KosTossupNovember 5, 2018
538Lean D (flip)November 7, 2018
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican126,09847.6
Democratic123,85946.8
Libertarian14,7315.6
264,688100.0

The district is based in the Kansas City metropolitan area and surrounding suburbs in eastern Kansas. Cities include Kansas City and Overland Park. Incumbent Republican Kevin Yoder had represented the district since 2011. Yoder was re-elected with 51% of the vote in 2016. Yoder lost to his Democratic challenger, attorney Sharice Davids, who became one of the first Native American women ever elected to Congress.

  • Kevin Yoder, incumbent representative

  • Trevor Keegan

  • Joe Myers

PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican53,13068.1
Republican14,57418.7
Republican10,26813.2
77,972100.0
  • Sharice Davids, attorney, mixed martial artist, and former White House Fellow

  • Mike McCamon, businessman

  • Tom Niermann, teacher

  • Jay Sidie, financial counselor and nominee for this seat in 2016

  • Brent Welder, attorney

  • Sylvia Williams, former financial services manager

  • Chris Haulmark (dropped out to run for the Kansas House of Representatives)

  • Reggie Marselus, retired union official and candidate for this seat in 2014 & 2016

  • Joe McConnell, businessman and Iraq War veteran

  • Andrea Ramsey, attorney and former healthcare executive

Poll sourceDate(s)administeredSamplesizeMargin oferrorShariceDavidsTomNiermannBrentWelderOtherUndecided
Public Policy Polling (D)August 2–3, 2018543± 4.2%21%15%35%12%17%
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic23,37937.3
Democratic21,19033.9
Democratic8,93914.3
Democratic4,3546.9
Democratic2,9554.7
Democratic1,7902.9
62,607100.0
Poll sourceDate(s)administeredSamplesizeMargin oferrorKevinYoder (R)ShariceDavids (D)ChrisClemmons (L)Undecided
Emerson CollegeOctober 26–28, 2018262± 6.3%43%55%1%
NYT Upshot/Siena CollegeOctober 14–17, 2018503± 4.7%39%48%3%11%
Emerson CollegeSeptember 26–28, 2018246± 6.4%41%47%2%10%
NYT Upshot/Siena CollegeSeptember 20–23, 2018494± 4.7%43%51%6%
Remington Research (R-Yoder)September 18–20, 2018610± 4.0%43%40%
Global Strategy Group (D-Davids)August 13–15, 2018400± 4.9%43%46%4%7%
SourceRankingAs of
The Cook Political ReportLean D (flip)November 5, 2018
Inside ElectionsLean D (flip)November 5, 2018
Sabato's Crystal BallLean D (flip)November 5, 2018
RCPLean D (flip)November 5, 2018
Daily KosLean D (flip)November 5, 2018
538Likely D (flip)November 7, 2018
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic170,51853.6
Republican139,76243.9
Libertarian8,0212.5
318,301100.0
Democratic gain from Republican

The fourth district is based in southern Kansas, including Wichita and the surrounding suburbs. Incumbent Republican Ron Estes had represented the district since 2017. Estes was elected with 52.5% of the vote in 2017.

Prior to Estes, Mike Pompeo represented the district. Pompeo had been nominated as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency in the Donald Trump administration. After Pompeo was confirmed, a special election was held for the remainder of Pompeo's term. Ron Estes won the special election on April 11, 2017.

The Republican Party selected a nominee during a Republican Party primary election which took place on August 7, 2018. The Republican primary was open to registered voters who were either unaffiliated or registered as Republicans.

  • Ron Estes, incumbent U.S. representative

  • Ron M. Estes (different candidate with similar name), high level manager at Boeing for 40 years including working on the International Space Station project

  • Susan Wagle, Kansas Senate president

Because there were two Republican candidates named Ron Estes, the names appeared on the ballot as "Rep. Ron Estes" and "Ron M. Estes", which some criticized as breaking a state law that prohibits identifying an incumbent on the ballot.

PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican57,52281.4
Republican13,15918.6
70,681100.0

The Democratic Party selected a nominee during a Democratic Party primary election that took place on August 7, 2018. The primary was open to registered voters who were either unaffiliated or registered as Democrats.

  • James Thompson, civil rights attorney, military veteran and nominee for this seat in 2017

  • Laura Lombard, businesswoman and CEO of ImEpik (online workforce training services)

Senator Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigned for Democrat James Thompson on July 20, 2018, after the national Democratic party would not support him. Laura Lombard criticized the state's decision to list incumbent Ron Estes as "Rep. Ron Estes" on the ballot, because she believed this broke state laws which prohibit a candidate from being identified as an incumbent on the ballot.

PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic20,26165.2
Democratic10,79734.8
31,058100.0
SourceRankingAs of
The Cook Political ReportSafe RNovember 5, 2018
Inside ElectionsSafe RNovember 5, 2018
Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RNovember 5, 2018
RCPSafe RNovember 5, 2018
Daily KosSafe RNovember 5, 2018
538Safe RNovember 7, 2018
CNNSafe ROctober 31, 2018
PoliticoSafe RNovember 4, 2018
Poll sourceDate(s)administeredSamplesizeMargin oferrorRonEstes (R)JamesThompson (D)Undecided
Emerson CollegeOctober 26–28, 2018262± 6.3%63%33%4%
Emerson CollegeSeptember 26–28, 2018256± 6.4%50%26%20%
Change Research (D-Thompson)July 17–19, 20181,896± 2.25%42%38%20%
No.DateHostModeratorLinkRepublicanDemocratic
Oct. 5, 2018PBS KansasSusan PetersYouTubePP
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican144,24859.4
Democratic98,44540.6
242,693100.0
  • Candidates at Vote Smart
  • Candidates at Ballotpedia
  • Campaign finance at FEC
  • Campaign finance at OpenSecrets

Official campaign websites of first district candidates

  • Alan LaPolice (D) for Congress
  • Roger Marshall (R) for Congress

Official campaign websites of second district candidates

  • Paul Davis (D) for Congress
  • Steve Watkins (R) for Congress Archived July 24, 2019, at the Wayback Machine

Official campaign websites of third district candidates

  • Sharice Davids (D) for Congress
  • Kevin Yoder (R) for Congress

Official campaign websites of fourth district candidates

  • Ron Estes (R) for Congress
  • James Thompson (D) for Congress Archived January 31, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
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