The Kansas Republican Party has canceled the final U.S. Senate debate scheduled for July 15 because of a disagreement over the format.
Candidates Bob Hamilton, Kris Kobach and David Lindstrom refused to participate in a debate format that was agreed upon in January through a memorandum of understanding, the party said in announcing the cancellation.
In its announcement, the GOP included the agreement that defined a debate as any event where the “candidates are directed to respond to one another or are asked to each respond to questions.”
The party had already held three debates, in Olathe, Manhattan and Wichita.
Earlier this week, Kobach, Hamilton and Lindstrom threatened to withdraw from the debate, saying the party had altered the format in a way that would benefit Congressman Roger Marshall.
They said the party planned to use a format where the candidates would be interviewed one-on-one rather than a more traditional style where candidates are asked questions on a stage and given the opportunity to clash with one another.
“This is a clear effort to protect the establishment candidate from having to answer for his actions,” Kobach, Hamilton and Lindstrom said in a joint statement.
“By demanding a format change, Roger Marshall is running from the very questions that Kansas voters deserve answers to.”
Marshall campaign spokesman Eric Pahls focused his response on Kobach, calling his actions “childish.”
“Kansans have seen this before,” Pahls said. “It is no surprise that Kris Kobach, who has damaged the Kansas Republican Party for decades, would behave so childishly when he doesn’t get what he wants.”
Pahls added, “The Marshall campaign will stay true to our word, and follow the agreement.
“We will stay focused on getting our message out to Kansans, and leave the inside baseball drama to desperate campaigns looking for their 15 seconds of fame.”
Shannon Golden, executive director of the Kansas Republican Party, said the debate format was intended to draw out more depth on the issues from the candidates.
“We wanted to provide our voters with more substance and,unfortunately we couldn’t come to an agreement with three of our candidates,” Golden said.
In April, Kansas Republican Party Chairman Mike Kuckelman came under criticism for asking David Lindstrom and Senate President Susan Wagle to bow out of the U.S. Senate race.
In letters sent to both candidates, Kuckelman told Wagle and Lindstrom there was no way for them to win the Senate race based on fundraising and polling data.
Kuckelman had said that he thought that candidates who couldn’t win should pull out of the race so they didn’t change the outcome of the campaign.
Kobach’s campaign manager Robert Savino said the GOP’s agreement setting up the debates in now dead.
“The Kobach campaign will now participate in any forums or debates we choose, because the chairman of the Kansas GOP changed the agreed upon debate format in order to benefit one candidate,” Savino said in a statement.
“Kansans deserve a Senator who will honor the spirit of a signed agreement, and Republicans deserve leadership that refuses to place its finger on the scale in primary races,” he said.
