Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has lost his bid to be governor of Kansas, in a major setback for the Trump-aligned voter fraud watchdog.
With 98 per cent of votes counted, Laura Kelly, the Democratic nominee, has won handily with 47.9 per cent of the vote, compared to Kobach’s 43.2.
Despite Kobach’s close ties to Trump, the wide unpopularity of the Brownback administration is also a factor in the state, and this is the first time voters have had the chance to take out their displeasure with a Republican governor at the ballot box.
Cockburn reported in March that Kobach had been blocked from the position of Homeland Security Secretary by Sens. John McCain and Lindsay Graham. He had been offered an assistant secretary position but declined that, hoping to be Kansas governor instead. That cushy executive branch job is probably looking a lot more attractive today.
On the bright side for Kobach, with Republicans picking up seats in the Senate, he’d probably have an easier time getting confirmed if a position were to be offered again. And Kirstjen Nielsen over at DHS has been coming under a lot of criticism lately…