Currently holds the office of Kansas State Senate - District 2 until January 13, 2025.
Candidate for Kansas State Senate - District 2 in 2024 Kansas General Election.
View your personalized ballot, check your voter registration, make a plan to vote, and research every name and measure on the ballot with BallotReady.
Get StartedAfter the reversal of Roe and the August 2022 referendum, I reviewed the statutes related to abortion care in Kansas. Senator Holland and I co-sponsored SB 206 to remove outdated statutes, allow for insurance to cover abortions, and equitable tax treatment of donations to groups like Planned Parenthood. Once re-elected, I will work to update that bill to address the recent Kansas Supreme Court rulings, IVF care, and contraception. We cannot just talk about this issue, we need someone who will LEAD on the issue, and I am committed to being the Kansas State Senator who will do just that. Learn more
The Governor has proposed a Kansas Office of Early Childhood to coordinate early childhood services. I support this initiative along with providing early childhood education. We must also support postsecondary education in the state, including technical education as well as higher education. We should be treating educators as professionals and recognize the State Board of Education as the policy leader. We will do best with a well-educated constituency. Learn more
At a minimum we should require minimum energy efficiency building codes to apply to state-funded construction. Local municipalities and counties have taken the lead in environmental legislation – a good example is Lawrence’s plastic bag ban. The legislature needs to respect local control and not stand in the way of local initiatives supported by local citizens. Learn more
I have been a longtime ally of the LGBTQ community in Kansas and am deeply concerned that this bill would have affected Kansas families who are simply attempting to provide compassion, understanding and care for their children who want gender affirming treatment. I strongly support the rights for individuals, their families, and their doctors acting without governmental overreach and will defend their rights to determine their own health care choices. Ideological demands on best parenting plans should have no place in Kansas. We should not judge people for being who they are but rather accept and applaud all our individualities. Learn more
View your personalized ballot, check your voter registration, make a plan to vote, and research every name and measure on the ballot with BallotReady.