Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach (R) is running for reelection against Chris Mann (D).
The election is a rematch between the two candidates who ran against each other four years ago, when Kobach was first elected Attorney General by only 1.6%.
Chris Mann (D) is a former police officer and former prosecutor.
Kris Kobach is a far-right Republican with a long history in Kansas Politics.
Every step of Kobach’s political career has been mired in scandal, which can easily be seen on his Wikipedia page.
Kris Kobach was elected Secretary of State in 2010.
He was reelected Secretary of State in 2014.
Kobach ran for Governor in 2018.
As the Republican nominee, he lost to Laura Kelly (D), who was elected to her first term.
In 2020, Kobach ran for US Senate, but he lost the Republican Primary to Roger Marshall.
Marshall went on to win the general election against Barbara Bollier (D), and win his first term in the Senate.
After two high-profile losses, Kobach ran for Kansas Attorney General in 2022.
Kobach narrowly won the general election, against Chris Mann (D), by 1.6%.
I have voted against Kris Kobach every four years, since I have been old enough to vote.
I voted against Kris Kobach for Secretary of State in 2010, when I was 18 years old.
I voted against Kris Kobach when he ran for reelection for Secretary of State in 2014.
I voted against Kris Kobach when he ran for Governor in 2018.
I voted against Kris Kobach for Attorney General in 2022.
And I voted against Kris Kobach when he ran for reelection for Attorney General this year, in 2026.
I have voted against Kris Kobach 5 times over the past 16 years.
Let’s take a look at some of the lowlights of Kobach’s political career.
Dead Man Voting
Kris Kobach ran for Secretary of State in 2010 while promoting unfounded fears of widespread voter fraud.
In October 2010, Kobach held a press conference where he said 1,966 dead people were registered to vote in Kansas.
“Every one of those 1,966 identities is an opportunity for voter fraud waiting to happen,” Kobach said.
Kobach cited one person, Alfred Brewer, who died in 1996, according to Social Security records, who had voted in the August 2010 primary election.
"Is it the same one?” Kobach asked. “We are still trying to achieve confirmation of this, but it certainly seems like a very real possibility."
A reporter for the Wichita Eagle found Alfred Brewer outside his home, raking leaves.
The Alfred Brewer who had died was his father.
“I don’t think this is heaven, not when I’m raking leaves,” Brewer said.
Remedial Legal Classes
In 2011, Kansas approved a law that required people to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote.
Kobach advocated for the law, which was passed by the Kansas Legislature and signed by Gov. Sam Brownback (R), to address voter fraud.
A federal judge struck down that provision of the law in 2018.
Judge Julie Robinson said the law, “disproportionately impacts duly qualified registration applicants, while only nominally preventing noncitizen voter registration.”
Judge Robinson criticized Kobach for violating the court's procedures meant to ensure a fair trial.
“The disclosure violations set forth above document a pattern and practice by Defendant of flaunting disclosure and discovery rules that are designed to prevent prejudice and surprise at trial," the Judge wrote.
Judge Robinson ordered Kobach to take continuing legal education due to his failure to abide by his legal obligations.
“It is not clear to the Court whether Defendant repeatedly failed to meet his disclosure obligations intentionally or due to his unfamiliarity with the federal rules,” Judge Robinson wrote.
“Therefore, the Court finds that an additional sanction is appropriate in the form of Continuing Legal Education.”
In 2020, a federal appeals court upheld Judge Robinson’s ruling against the provision of the Kansas law that requires proof of citizenship to register to vote.
Lying for Trump
In 2016, Kobach said he agreed with Donald Trump that the number of illegal votes cast in the 2016 presidential election exceeded Hillary Clinton’s margin of victory in the popular vote.
Kobach took Trump's transparent lie and attempted to give it the appearance of legitimacy.
Kobach said as many as 3.2 million votes may have been cast illegally by non-citizens.
Kobach said his estimate was based on a study, which the Lawrence Journal World said was “roundly criticized in academic circles.”
The newspaper also said Kobach overstated the study’s findings.
Defending Lead Pipes
In 2024, Kobach led a coalition of 15 Republican State Attorneys General to oppose an EPA regulation to replace lead pipes to reduce lead contamination in drinking water.
According to the Kansas Reflector, the coalition was unsuccessful.
"The EPA under the Biden administration required replacement of lead pipes within 10 years and announced $27.7 million in funding for Kansas to do so in October 2024," the Reflector reported.
"The EPA made another announcement for $53 million in May."
During his State of the Union in 2024, President Joe Biden cited as one of his accomplishments, “removing poisonous lead pipes, so every child can drink clean water without risk of getting brain damage.”
Kobach responded on Twitter.
“Biden wants to replace lead pipes. He failed to mention that the unfunded mandate sets an almost impossible timeline, will cost billions, infringe on the rights of the States and their residents – all for benefits that may be entirely speculative,” Kobach wrote.
Abortion Rights
Kris Kobach supported a proposed constitutional amendment to elect state Supreme Court Justices.
In 2022, Kobach told a group of Republicans the change would “slowly and quietly” place anti-abortion judges on the Kansas Supreme Court, with the goal of overturning of a decision that protects abortion rights in the state.
Voters rejected the constitutional amendment in August 2026 by 23%.
Trans IDs
In 2023, The Kansas Legislature approved a broad and vaguely-worded law to limit transgender rights.
While the law didn’t mention identity documents specifically, Kris Kobach issued a legal interpretation of the law that said the law’s provisions require driver's licenses and birth certificates to describe transgender people based on their sex assigned at birth.
Kobach sued the Kansas Department of Revenue for continuing to allow transgender Kansans to obtain driver's licenses that identify them based on their gender identity, rather than their sex assigned at birth.
A State District Court Judge sided with Kobach, and issued a preliminary injunction preventing transgender Kansans from updating their driver's licenses.
The Kansas Appeals Court overturned the injunction, allowing those gender marker changes to resume.
Last year, the Kansas Supreme Court declined to hear the case, leaving the Appeals Court decision in place.
This year, Republicans in the Kansas Legislature approved a law that explicitly prevents transgender people from updating their gender on their identity documents, and invalidates existing documents that don't identify them based on their sex assigned at birth.
Long story short, Kris Kobach used his position as Attorney General to make life harder for transgender Kansans, for no good reason.
Conclusion
Kris Kobach (R) is an extremist, a charlatan, and an embarrassment to the State of Kansas.
He should be voted out of office, and he should never hold any position in government, elected or appointed, ever again.
He should resign in disgrace and retire from political life.
I strongly endorse Chris Mann (D) for Kansas Attorney General.
I hope this election ends Kris Kobach’s political career.
But it won't, and I'll continue to vote against Kobach, over and over, for the foreseeable future.
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