One of the big issues in Dr. Milton Wolf’s challenge to Pat Roberts in the Kansas Republican Senate primary is that Roberts isn’t a resident of Kansas.
Roberts hasn’t lived in Kansas in any meaningful sense for decades. Unless you consider renting a couch being a resident:
So Wolf’s campaign supporters filed a challenge to Roberts’ ability to appear on the ballot because Roberts doesn’t meet the residency requirement.
The elections panel deciding the issue all had endorsed Roberts. although they sent “substitutes” to the meeting:
Secretary of State Kris Kobach, Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer and Attorney General Derek Schmidt, all Republicans who’ve endorsed Roberts, comprise the Objects Board. But all of them sent substitutes to the board meeting.
The Board qualified Roberts for the Ballot.
Steve Kraske writes in The Kansas City Star, Sen. Pat Roberts’ residency in Kansas is a valid question:
Sen. Pat Roberts is not a Kansas resident, at least not in the sense that most people understand the word “resident.” He hasn’t been for a long time….Roberts shouts back that he’s the real deal. He rents out a home he owns in Dodge City and pays $300-a-month rent to two longtime supporters in Dodge City to stay in their home when he’s around.That, he says, makes him as a resident.The Objections Board, comprised of statewide pols who have all endorsed Roberts, agreed.So what’s the big deal? Well, it’s a big deal because of the potential political consequences. And it’s a big deal because of the quality of representation Kansans receive in Washington.The residency issue in Indiana sunk longtime senator Richard Lugar in 2012. If it catches on in Kansas, it could sink Roberts too….This week, a USA Today story based on Senate financial records concluded that Roberts spent 97 days in the state between July 2011 and August 2013.
A lot of the press lately is that Mississippi is the last best hope for Tea Party supporters to unseat an incumbent.
Don’t count out Kansas. The primary isn’t until August 5. An energized focus on Kansas actually is the last best hope.
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