Third District congressional Democratic candidates explain general election appeal

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On so many issues, the Democrats running for the 3rd Congressional District seat sound so similar.

Immigration. Wages. Health care. Guns. The environment. Beyond their own unique speaking styles, it can be hard to separate one from the other.

Until they talk about the general election. Then some daylight starts to shine through.

Each of the six Democrats – Sharice Davids, Mike McCamon, Tom Niermann, Jay Sidie, Brent Welder and Sylvia Williams – explained how they would attract Republican and unaffiliated voters at a forum Saturday.

The winner will likely face four-term Republican Congressman Kevin Yoder in the fall although he did pick up two relatively unknown primary opponents this week.

The answers varied from candidate to candidate, giving voters a glimpse into how they might approach a general election if they win the Democratic nomination.

Welder touted his support from organized labor, stressing the need to go after President Barack Obama’s supporters who backed President Donald Trump in 2016. He said it’s a “myth” to think the Democrats need to rely on attracting Republicans to win.

Niermann said he would emphasize local issues that many voters in the 3rd District care about, including education, health care and good-paying jobs.

Williams talked about her community roots in local organizations, saying that the fact that she’s viewed as a moderate would help her win support from across party lines

Davids said she would listen to voters more.

McCamon talked about integrity and the need to stand up for what’s right.

Sidie said his experience – he was the party’s nominee against Yoder in 2016 – would give him an edge.

Dismissing the notion that “country club Republicans” hold sway in the 3rd District, Welder said winning the general election will be about appealing to progressives.

Brent Welder

He said the district was one of just a handful won by Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential race and Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primary.

“There is a proud progressive base in this district,” Welder told an audience of a couple hundred peopleĀ at the Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist Church in Lenexa.

“I think it’s really a myth to think that, ‘Oh, we just need to attract a bunch of Republicans to vote for us,” Welder said.

Tom Niermann

“We need to attract back the people that voted for Obama and then voted for Donald Trump,” Welder said. “These are not the country club Republican crowd. These are working families that were tricked when Donald Trump used Republican, right-wing wedge issues to get their vote even though they voted for Barack Obama.”

Niermann took a little different approach, saying he would reach out to Republicans and unaffiliated voters by talking about local issues such as schools and controlling health care costs.

“Having grown up in Kansas and having lived in the 3rd District for as long as I have, I can tell you that people are interested in good government,” Niermann said.

“What we focus on is making sure that this federal office is a federal office that serves the people of this district. That’s not a Republican issue, that’s not a Democratic issue. That is an issue that is important to people in our community.”

Sharice Davids

Davids said voters are looking for someone who will listen to them talk about their needs.

“What we need are politicians who want to listen to people regardless of what their party affiliation is, regardless of which county they’re in and how much money they can give to their campaign,” she said.

“If I’ve seen anything in this entire process, it’s more often than not people are surprised that I want to listen to them instead of just talking about myself.”

Sylvia Williams

While Williams acknowledges that her policies are not much different from Welder’s, she said voters perceive her as a moderate. As much as that may be a weakness in the primary, she said, it would help attract votes in the general election.

Williams said her work in community non-partisan groups such as the Girl Scouts, United Methodist Women and Building Better Moms would serve her well. “I think that has given me a lot of exposure to have a lot of support across party lines.”

Mike McCamon

McCamon said voters in the 3rd District want someone who will stand up for what is right, even willing to call out the president for inappropriate remarks.

“What we need to do win back this district is talk to people about our integrity, tell our stories about how we’re Kansans, that we care about this part of town, that we raised our kids here, that we’re going to stay and here and we’re going to stand our ground.

“This is our town. This is not Donald Trump’s town. This is not even Kevin Yoder’s town.”

Jay Sidie

SidieĀ said the party needs to better control emotions the Republicans use to win support at the polls.

The party nominee, he said, needs to flip those emotional issues and use them to their advantage in the fall.

“We need to go to those people that are unaffiliated and…put the fear of God into them that we need to change things,” he said.