Advance in-person voting began in Johnson County on Saturday, Oct. 17, with crowds and long lines in some locations. The county is also accepting mail-in ballots, which can be sent back through the postal service or dropped off at eight secure drop boxes spread out across the county.
Johnson County election officials say tens of thousands of voters cast ballots — both in-person and through mail-in ballots — in the first days of early voting. They encourage those who can to vote as early as possible to lessen the chance of large crowds at polling sits on Election Day, Nov. 3. The county’s interim election commissioner has said they are preparing for 90% turnout for the 2020 general election.
The Shawnee Mission Post has put together our election primers to give people an easy way to find out where the candidates stand on the issues. This is a primer for the race in Kansas’ 3rd U.S. House District, which covers Johnson and Wyandotte Counties and part of Miami County.
SHAMELESS PLUG
No other news outlet devotes as much attention to giving Shawnee Mission area voters a way to find out where candidates running for local office stand on the issues facing our community. If you value having a news outlet provide this kind of coverage, we hope you’ll consider becoming a subscriber if you aren’t already.
Who’s on the ballot
Sharice Davids won her first term in Kansas’ 3rd U.S. House District in 2018, defeating Republican Congressman Kevin Yoder. She is now running for a second term and is being challenged by Republican Amanda Adkins, a former executive at Cerner and one-time official in the administration of former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, and Libertarian Steve Hohe, a retired U.S. Air Force officer.
The candidates’ names who will appear on Johnson Countians’ ballots are below, with links to their campaign websites.
Candidate questionnaires
Earlier this month, we published the candidates’ responses to the questionnaires we developed with input from our readers. You can find each of the five questionnaire items linked below:
- Question 1: Protests over police treatment of Black Americans have roiled the country since the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May. What changes to law enforcement policy would you support to ensure that Black Americans do not face increased risk of harm or harassment at the hands of police? Read their answers here.
- Question 2: By the end of this year, the federal debt will be nearly equal to the size of the entire United States economy. The deficit has been exacerbated in recent years by the 2017 tax cuts and the stimulus package enacted at the start of the pandemic. How big a priority to you is lowering the federal debt? What specific steps would you support to reduce it? Read their answers here.
- Question 3: The number of deaths from COVID-19 per 100,000 people in the United States is considerably higher than many developed Western countries (like Canada, France and Germany) — though slightly below others (like the UK and Spain). Are you satisfied with the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic? What could the government have done differently to improve outcomes here in the United States? Read their answers here.
- Question 4: The United States currently spends more per capita on healthcare costs than any developed country — yet our citizens’ health outcomes continue to lag, with rates of obesity and chronic disease much higher than our peers. What does the U.S. need to do to lower its healthcare spending and improve healthcare outcomes for its residents? Should universal health insurance be a priority and, if so, what form should that take? Read their answers here.
- Question 5: Climate change continues to be a major concern for Shawnee Mission Post readers. What steps should the federal government be taking now to address the impact of the changing climate in the coming decades? How would you work to see those steps enacted? Read their answers here.
Candidate interviews
Post editor Kyle Palmer conducted a one-on-one interview with Rep. Davids earlier this month. That full interview (along with interviews with U.S. Senate candidates Barbara Bollier and Roger Marshall) can be found at the Post’s Facebook page.
Following multiple contacts, Adkins’ campaign has yet to agree to an interview with the Post, but we will publish that if it is ultimately arranged. Hohe has not responded to the Post’s request for a one-on-one interview.
Other coverage
The Post has also published issue-based stories in recent weeks regarding the race and candidates in Kansas’ 3rd District, produced by our reporters, as well as our media partners at The Kansas Reflector and the Kansas News Service.
- Rep. Sharice Davids among Democrats calling for removal of Postmaster amid Postal Service uproar (Aug. 17)
- How the coronavirus altered the race for Kansas’ 3rd U.S. House District (Sept. 24)
- Kansas’ entire Congressional delegation —including Democrat Davids — votes against latest U.S. House coronavirus bill (Oct. 5)
