An aide to former Congressman Dan Glickman and former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is running to replace Senate President Susan Wagle in the state Senate.
Melissa Gregory, who worked as Glickman’s district director in the 4th Congressional District office, is making a bid for the Senate District 30 seat that Wagle has held for about 20 years.
Wagle is leaving the Legislature after running for the U.S. Senate and withdrawing from the race on Thursday.
Gregory emerges to fill the void left by former Sedgwick County District Attorney Nola Foulston’s decision not to run for the seat after announcing her candidacy in February.
“This is a critical time for our state and country, and I want to do everything I can to assist the economic and health care recovery in a thoughtful way,” Gregory said in a statement.
“The people of this district deserve a leader who will work tirelessly to come up with solutions in the best interests of the district and the state.”
Gregory may face a primary, however. Amy Lyon, who ran for Wichita mayor last year, is expected to file for the seat on Friday.
Democrats saw Foulston as a political star that would have given them a strong chance to take a seat that had been in Republican hands for at least two decades.
She had received national acclaim for prosecuting notorious criminals such as BTK serial killer Dennis Rader and Scott Roeder for the 2009 fatal shooting of abortion provider George Tiller
But Foulston had health issues that limited her ability to immerse herself in a state Senate campaign.
“I am having a difficult time with this. I have really wanted to do this,” Foulston told the Sunflower State Journal last week. “But there are only so many barriers that I can go through to do this.
“If I couldn’t do it 100%, I wouldn’t be able do it,” she said.
Foulston will now serve as Gregory’s campaign treasurer.
“I’m incredibly grateful for all of the support I have received since announcing my campaign, and I ask that all of you show the same support to Melissa,” Foulston said in a statement.
Gregory has her own place in Kansas political circles.
She worked as a special assistant to Glickman when he was secretary for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
She later returned to Kansas where she worked as the Wichita office manager and director of senior health insurance counseling for Kansas in the state Insurance Department under Sebelius.
When Sebelius was elected Kansas governor, Gregory joined the administration as the appointments secretary.
“I personally understand the economic impact of this public health crisis,” Gregory said. “It is time to move Kansas forward in a productive and civilized manner while also protecting everyone’s lives.”
Republican state Rep. Renee Erickson announced her candidacy – with Wagle’s support – for the Senate seat last year. She raised $11,700 in 2019 and had a balance of $11,310 at the end of the year.
“Nola had a distinguished track record of service to the Wichita community as district attorney,” Erickson said. “I understand the difficult decision she faced withdrawing from the race.”
Erickson added, “I look forward to a serious debate on the issues facing Kansas and tacking the job of getting our citizens back to work and rebuilding our economy.”
Democratic Gov. Kelly carried the district by 14 percentage points over Republican Kris Kobach in 2018’s governor’s race.
The district went for President Donald Trump in 2016 (50.2%), former Gov. Sam Brownback in 2014 (48.5%) and Mitt Romney in 2012 (57.3%).
