President Donald Trump, an ardent supporter of Republican Kris Kobach for governor, was among about a half-dozen groups making independent expenditures in Kansas campaigns.
While the president certainly didn’t lay out the most money of any of the groups making independent expenditures — he did visit Kansas, after all — he certainly had the most star power of any of them, according to campaign finance reports filed last week.
State campaign finance reports show that the president spent about $4,200 on robo calls and software services on behalf of Kobach.
Topping the list of groups making independent expenditures was the LGBTQ Victory Fund, which spent about $68,400 campaigning for two Democratic Kansas House candidates in Johnson County: Brandon Woodard in House District 30 and Susan Ruiz in House District 23.
Woodard is running against Republican Wendy Bingesser, and Ruiz is running against Republican state Rep. Linda Gallagher. Ruiz and Woodard are seeking to become the first openly gay members of the Kansas Legislature.
The Washington-based group spent $31,000 on the Gallagher/Ruiz race, where the incumbent had raised more than three times what the Democratic challenger raised. In an ironic twist, Gallagher had received the endorsement of Equality Kansas, the state’s leading advocacy group for LGBT rights.
The group also put another $37,000 into campaigning for Woodard, who already was one of the state’s leading fundraisers in the reporting period that ended Oct. 25.
The conservative Family Policy Alliance of Kansas, meanwhile, spent about $31,000 in independent expenditures.
The group supported a number of conservative candidates, including Paul Waggoner, who defeated moderate Republican Steve Becker in the primary; Bingesser, who is running against Woodard in House District 30; and Republican Adam Thomas, who is running against Democrat Deann Mitchell in House District 26.
The group also made expenditures supporting Tony Barton, who is running against Democratic state Rep. Jeff Pittman in House District 41; Republican Cheryl Helmer, who is running against Democratic state Rep. Ed Trimmer in House District 79; and Republican Charlotte Esau, who is running against Angela Justus Schweller in House District 14, which came open when Esau’s husband ran for secretary of state.
The Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund spent about $18,000 opposing Kobach. Its money went for digital advertising and media production, campaign finance records show.
MoveON.org dropped about $1,300 for Democrat Laura Kelly in the governor’s race. It all went to Facebook advertising.
Koch Industries sent a mailing to its employees on Oct. 22 supporting 29 candidates for state office. The filing didn’t list the candidates.
“The portion of the mailing attributable to each candidate was $5.46. Per advice from your office, the expenditures fall under the requirement to itemize disbursements in excess of $50,” the company wrote in its filing.
Lastly, the National Community Pharmacists Association political action committee spent $100 on behalf of Republican Vicki Schmidt in her race for insurance commissioner.
