Two candidates, Jennifer Day and Samuel Lane, are running in the Democratic Primary for Kansas Secretary of State.
The choice is fairly straightforward, because Jennifer Day appears qualified for the job, and Samuel Lane does not.
Both Jennifer Day and Samuel Lane are from Johnson County. Day is from Overland Park. Lane is from Shawnee.
The Kansas Secretary of State is responsible for overseeing elections in the state, but the position has many other responsibilities as well.
The Kansas Secretary of State runs an office that administers elections in Kansas, collects business records, registers lobbyists, and produces official publications for the state of Kansas.
Jennifer Day
On her campaign website, Jennifer Day says she has 16 years of business experience in technology, real estate, and finance.
Jennifer Day served in the Kansas Legislature, worked as an election worker for seven years, and volunteered with the League of Women Voters.
Day also built a small real estate investment firm and founded an interior design company.
Day’s experience in government and business prepares her well for the responsibilities of Secretary of State.
On her campaign website, Jennifer Day said she will protect election integrity, protect the right to vote, and make it easier to start and operate a business in Kansas.
Day believes voting should be easy, accessible, and secure.
“As a State Representative, I’ve grown increasingly frustrated with leaders at both the federal and state levels who spread lies and disinformation about our elections, creating confusion and eroding trust in the process,” Day wrote on her campaign website.
“As Secretary of State, I will work to shut down disinformation, instill the electorate with a newfound sense of confidence, and ensure that voters have the information they need to make an informed decision at the ballot box.”
Jennifer Day has been endorsed by Governor Laura Kelly, Kansas House Democratic Leader Brandon Woodard, and Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes.
Day has also been endorsed by Nikki McDonald and Dan Osman, two Johnson County Democrats in the Kansas Legislature.
In 2024, McDonald and Osman were the two Democrats who were elected to the Kansas House by the narrowest margins in the most competitive elections.
A Competitive District
Jennifer Day served in the Kansas Legislature for one year, from June 2020 to June 2021.
Day represented Dist. 48, a highly competitive district in Johnson County, in the Kansas House.
Democratic Party officials chose Day to complete the term of Dave Benson, who resigned.
In 2018, Benson (D) won by 82 votes, or 0.8%.
In 2020, Jennifer Day was elected to represent Dist. 48 in the Kansas House.
Day (D) won by 62 votes, or 0.5%.
Jennifer Day resigned in June 2021, because she moved out of the district.
Democratic Party officials chose Dan Osman to complete the remainder of Day’s term.
In 2022, Dan Osman was elected to represent Dist. 48 in the Kansas House.
Osman (D) won by 267 votes, or 2.7%.
In 2024, Dan Osman was reelected in Dist. 48.
Osman (D) won by 723 votes, or 5.8%.
This year, Osman is running unopposed in Dist. 48.
Samuel Lane
Samuel Lane, who is also running for Kansas Secretary of State, seems like a good guy, but he appears to lack relevant experience for the job.
Lane has a working class background.
He inspects and tests materials for construction, and he previously worked in manufacturing.
He does not appear to have any previous experience running elections.
On his campaign website, Samuel Lane said he wants, “fair and accurate elections to protect Democracy.”
“The Federal Government is in chaos right now, and I can’t stand by and do nothing about it,” Lane wrote. “Running for office is probably the most constructive thing I can do. We need honest people more than ever now."
“But why Secretary of State?” Lane continued. “Because in Kansas, the Secretary of State oversees our elections. If you don’t have a Secretary of State that plays fair and takes the job seriously, you don’t have fair elections. And if you don’t have fair elections, you don’t have a democratic republic anymore. It’s that simple."
“I can’t fix this whole country by myself,” Lane added. “But with your vote, I’ll at least be able to safeguard Kansas.”
On his campaign website, Samuel Lane shares his views on voter fraud, voter suppression, local election administration, privacy, business taxes and registration, and state recordkeeping.
Lane has also compiled links to the campaign websites for candidates running for various positions in Kansas, which I have already found quite useful.
Conclusion
I encourage you to read the campaign websites for Jennifer Day and Samuel Lane, yourself.
As a former member of the Kansas Legislature, an election worker, and a small business owner, Jennifer Day appears to have ample relevant experience for the job of Kansas Secretary of State.
Samuel Lane appears to be an engaged and thoughtful citizen, who lacks previous experience running elections, running a business, or holding elected office.
If Lane looses this election, I would encourage him to apply to be an election worker or run for local office, such as county clerk.
But I would prefer the Kansas Secretary of State to have more relevant previous experience than he has on his resume.
For these reasons, I intend to vote for Jennifer Day in the Democratic Primary.
Therefore, she has my preliminary endorsement.
My endorsement could change based on subsequent developments, but I believe this one is likely to remain the same.
I plan to cover other primary elections, ahead of the Kansas Primary on Tuesday, Aug. 4.
These articles take quite a while to research and write, so we’ll see how many of them I am able to complete before the election.
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