By Grace Hills
In the Nov. 3 election, Republican Kansas Treasurer Steven Johnson faces two challengers for his job as the chief banker and financial manager for the state.
Juan C. Luengo, an insurance CEO from Overland Park, is his Democratic challenger. Libertarian Eric Lund is also running.
Meet the candidates.
Steven Johnson — Republican candidate (incumbent)
Political experience: Johnson was elected to the Kansas House in 2010 and served on budget committees. He was a critical voice in overturning the former Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax cuts that severely damaged the state’s budget.
He was elected to his first four-year term as state treasurer in 2022, ousting the Democrat who was appointed to fill the vacancy.
He spent more than 20 years at Ameriprise Financial, working his way up to senior vice president for investment products.
What else? In his 2022 race, his Democratic challenger alleged he was using the seat as a stepping stone to run for Congress. Two of the previous state treasurers, Jake LaTurner and Ron Estes, served in Congress after the position.
“Treasurer is a good fit for me,” Johnson told the Kansas Reflector in 2022. “If there are other offices that I would be a fit for to handle from that same position of trust, I would consider it. However, Washington doesn’t seem like that environment.”
Johnson narrowly won the primary that year. Johnson and his 2022 primary opponent, Caryn Tyson, blamed each other for former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax hikes that undercut state finances.
He took the general election by more than 13%.
Platform: He pitches himself as someone who will “look out for taxpayers and work hard to stop wasteful government spending.”
His campaign champions a 2023 law that required the state to ignore environmental, social or governance goals — like diversity — when making contract decisions and pension investments and instead focus on maximum profit.
He said he’s proud of his efforts in financial literacy. His office started financial classes for children in foster care and Kansans with disabilities.
“It has been so rewarding to work with the disabled community,” Johnson told the Topeka Capital-Journal.
Juan C. Luengo — Democratic candidate
Political experience: Luengo has never held an elected office. He’s the chief executive officer of an Overland Park insurance group.
He has volunteered for Mental Health America of the Heartland, the Greater Kansas City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Red Cross, and chaired the diversity committee for the Kansas City Realtors Association.
What else? He says the job isn’t about politics.
“This is about managing public money,” he wrote on his site. “That is the job, and it is the work I have done my whole career.”
Platform: His campaign’s five pillars call for more flexibility on tax-sheltered education savings accounts, steering more state investments through Kansas banks and credit unions, clearer public reports on state investments, property tax changes and better customer service.
“For too long, the Treasurer’s office has been a place where money simply passes through,” he said. “I want to make it a place where Kansas plans ahead.”
Eric Lund — Libertarian candidate
Eric Lund was selected as the Libertarian candidate, but does not have a campaign website. Lund did not respond to an email requesting details of his campaign.
Grace Hills is a politics and elections reporter for KCUR. Email her at [email protected]
