Majority leader of Kansas House plans to stand for speaker

House Majority Leader Jene Vickrey confirmed Wednesday that he plans to run for speaker of the Kansas House if he is re-elected this fall.

But Vickrey, R-Louisburg, who represents Miami County, said his efforts right now are focused on retaining Republican seats in the Legislature.

“I told my caucus now’s not the time to be running for leadership because we have members who have to be elected,” Vickrey told reporters after a meeting of the State Finance Council. “I do plan to be running for leadership … running for speaker. But now’s not the time. I’m not announcing anything because we’ve got work to do.”

House Speaker Ray Merrick, R-Stilwell, will retire at the end of this year after two terms as speaker. Kansas House speakers traditionally do not serve more than two terms.

Vickrey, who owns a floor covering company in Louisburg, was first elected to the House in 1992 and has been the majority leader for four years. He has no primary opponent, but he will face a general election challenge from Democrat Christy Levings.

Vickrey said he’s been traveling the state to knock on doors with Republican candidates and is confident in the party’s chances in the fall despite some anti-incumbent sentiment.

“It’s usually, ‘Well, I don’t like incumbents, but I like my incumbent,’ ” Vickrey said. “And that’s what I’ve run into. I’ve been out knocking on doors through districts across the state with incumbents and with (candidates for) open seats and that’s still what I’ve found, that people elect someone they trust.”

This story was originally published July 20, 2016 at 3:56 PM with the headline "Majority leader of Kansas House plans to stand for speaker."