Fourth Kansas teen wants to run for governor
A fourth teenager has entered Kansas’ gubernatorial race.
Dominic Scavuzzo, 17, Leawood, appointed his father, Edward Scavuzzo, as his campaign treasurer Wednesday. Scavazzo is a Republican and senior at Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Missouri.
Also running are: Jack Bergeson, 16, a high school junior and Wichita Democrat; Tyler Ruzich, 17, high school junior and Prairie Village Republican; and Ethan Randleas, 17, high school senior and Wichita Republican.
Overall, 11 Republicans, five Democrats, a Libertarian and an independent have established campaign accounts for the 2018 contest.
Bergeson, attending the Independent School, knew there was no age requirement for governor when he filed with the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission in 2016. News of his bid emerged in August 2017, and soon it made national news. In September, Ruzich, attending Shawnee Mission North High School, followed suit and Randleas jumped in next.
Ruzich communicated with Bergeson before entering the race, and Bergeson encouraged him to run. Bergeson said he’s tried to no avail to reach Randleas, and he did not know Scavuzzo was running.
Wichita Heights High School’s Randleas said he is running to bring a voice to defending liberty and citizens’ natural rights from an intrusive federal and state government.
Scavuzzo hasn’t selected a college yet but he plans to study political science and will head to law school after college. He participated in Kansas’ Boys State this summer and took part on a school trip to Washington, D.C., for the January inauguration of President Trump.
First campaigns are a learning experience, and Scavuzzo regards this race as a “pretty good opportunity” to gain experience for the future, he said.
Friends University political science professor Russell Fox said in the end what matters for the teen candidates will be name recognition. And they won’t have it.
“None of them have available to themselves a quarter million dollars to effectively run an advertising campaign,” he said.
Voters will see their ballot in 2018, and they’re not going to recognize the names of the teens, he said. But they will recognize a name or names of candidates who ran well-financed campaigns, complete with commercials, mailers and other advertising.
“These kids are doing it for a stunt, and they admit they’re doing it for a stunt,” Fox said. Will some people intentionally vote for a teen? “Some probably will, but most won’t,” Fox said.
“I think it just shows that the youth of Kansas actually cares,” Scavuzzo said, and they’re willing to take a stand.
Three of the four teens are Republican and Kansas Republican Party Chairman Kelly Arnold said the party’s principles “resonate with the next generation of leaders” and “it’s encouraging to see them engage in the political process.”
Scavuzzo picked someone older as a lieutenant governor running mate. Stephen Nugent is a 2017 high school graduate and now attends the University of Denver.
This story was originally published October 6, 2017 at 4:53 PM with the headline "Fourth Kansas teen wants to run for governor."