Kansas Rep. Watkins to face Republican challenge from Treasurer LaTurner

Kansas Treasurer Jake LaTurner has dropped his Senate bid and will instead run against freshman U.S. Rep. Steve Watkins, a fellow Republican.

The primary is a major political test for Watkins, a first-time elected official who won a bitterly contested Republican race last year with less than 27 percent of the vote. It comes after former Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer called on LaTurner last week to run for the seat.

LaTurner said Wednesday that Republicans must nominate a candidate who can win the second congressional district seat in the general election. The seat is in jeopardy with Watkins as the nominee, he said in an interview.

“Gov. Colyer pointed out in his statement, and I think it’s very accurate, there’s been poor fundraising, poor coalition building. And just a lack of seriousness about the work at hand,” LaTurner said.

Colyer would not comment on LaTurner’s entry into the race.

In recent weeks, Watkins has faced a whisper campaign seeking to discredit him. Unsubstantiated rumors involving his personal life have circulated within Republican circles — including that he would soon resign. Watkins has batted away the allegations.

LaTurner said he and his associates had nothing to do with the rumors. He said the whisper campaign was not part of his motivation for getting in the race.

A statement from Watkins campaign spokesman Bryan Piligra didn’t directly respond to comments about Watkins’ electability. He said the contrast between Watkins and LaTurner couldn’t be more clear: service versus self-service.

“Congressman Watkins is a war veteran, engineer, and conservative leader who votes in support of our President 93% of the time. Jake LaTurner is a career politician who has voted for tax increases and sides with labor unions over hard-working Kansans. Jake LaTurner’s entire career has been political ladder-climbing — and that climb ends in August,” Piligra said in the statement.

LaTurner said in response that he and his wife, Suzanne, took the decision to switch races very seriously.

LaTurner will launch his race for U.S. House with a cash advantage, according to federal campaign finance data from June. Under Federal Election Commission rules, LaTurner can use the money he has raised during his Senate campaign on a House race.

Watkins had $259,673 cash on hand on June 30, with $270,000 in debt from personal loans made during his 2018 campaign. LaTurner had $469,753 cash on hand with very little debt.

Watkins is enrolled in the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Patriots Program, which is designed to protect vulnerable incumbents. The National Republican Congressional Committee has said it does not comment on GOP primaries.

Bob Beatty, a political scientist at Washburn University, said this Republican primary challenge is unusual because it does not center on ideological differences.

Whoever wins the primary could face Democrat Abbie Hodgson, a Lawrence resident.

LaTurner’s decision to end his Senate bid comes after he failed to gain significant traction in the race, though he said Wednesday he believed he had a path to victory. LaTurner entered the race in January, a few days after Sen. Pat Roberts announced he wouldn’t run for reelection in 2020.

LaTurner, 31, has been hailed as a young Republican leader. He was appointed state treasurer in 2017 and elected to the office in 2018. He is the youngest statewide elected official in the country.

The end of LaTurner’s Senate campaign comes ahead of a Saturday announcement by Rep. Roger Marshall, who is expected to enter the Senate race.

Despite LaTurner’s exit, the Senate field remains large.

On the Republican side, former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle, former Chiefs player Dave Lindstrom and Republican commentator Bryan Pruitt are running.

On the Democratic side, former federal prosecutor Barry Grissom, former Rep. Nancy Boyda and Manhattan city commissioner Usha Reddi are in the race.

This story was originally published September 4, 2019 at 11:30 AM.