Schlitterbahn Verruckt tower to come down
Month: November 2018
Sharice Davids wins historic victory in Kansas 3rd Congressional District
by Sam Zeff, Kansas News Service
Six months ago, very few people in the Kansas 3rd Congressional District even knew Sharice Davids’ name. Now she has made history. Davids is the first openly gay representative in Kansas history. She joins Deb Haaland from New Mexico as the first Native American women in the House.
“We have a chance to reset expectations when people look at Kansas,” Davids said to a room full of cheering supporters. “I knew we could do better and we just did.”
Anticipation was high for this first-time candidate. Campaign organizers say 1,000 people RSVP’d the watch party in Olathe. They came expecting a win, but few people thought she would beat incumbent Rep. Kevin Yoder by nine points.
By 9 p.m., the crowd was cheering and dancing as Davids pulled away from Yoder. An hour later, dozens of her supporters were already sporting “Re-elect Sharice Davids” buttons.
The national implications for the race were obvious when Davids was introduced by Annise Parker, the first openly gay mayor of Houston and the CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund, an early backer of Davids.
“This race was not just about Kansas,” Parker said.
It was also a diverse crowd, with African-Americans, LGBTQ couples and Native Americans in attendance.
“This win was huge and long overdue,” said Collin Price, communications director of the Ho-Chunk Nation, of which Davids is a member. “To see someone who looks like us, it’s cool,” he told KCUR.
Running for his fifth term, Yoder was well known in the district. Before that, he spent four terms in the Kansas House of Representatives. He has lived for most of his adult life in Overland Park. Yoder was born near the Hutchinson, Kansas, area, and graduated from high school there. Davids went to Leavenworth High School.
Yoder, during the campaign, suggested Davids was a carpetbagger who moved back to Kansas simply to run for Congress.
He also attacked Davids for suggesting on a podcast that she might consider abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Davids denied that charge in TV spots and interviews.
But in his concession speech, Yoder took a more conciliatory tone and urged unity. “Republicans and Democrats must find common ground to get the job done because the American people are counting on it.”
Davids seemed to come out of nowhere. She joined a crowded Democratic field just six months before the August primary.
She announced her candidacy the day after 17 people were gunned down at a Florida high school. Davids made gun control and health care the two main pillars of her campaign.
Her two chief rivals, Brent Welder and Tom Niermann, had both been campaigning for months before Davids announced.
She got a big boost in the primary when Emily’s List kicked in more than $700,000 to her campaign. After that, she was a fundraising machine. Her campaign raised $2.7 million, according to the Federal Election Commission. Yoder raised almost $1 million dollars less than his rookie Democratic opponent.
Sam Zeff is KCUR’s metro reporter. You can follow Sam on Twitter @samzeff.
Frank Morris contributed to this report. Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link back to kcur.org.
See more at http://www.kcur.org/post/sharice-davids-wins-historic-victory-kansas-3rd-congressional-district
Temperatures dip today; snow possible Thursday
Temperatures won’ even reach 50 today, according to the National Weather Service forecast.
Snow is in the forecast for early Thursday, and again Thursday afternoon, night and Friday morning, the weather service said.
Snow totals are expected to be less than one inch, according to the weather service.
Today’s weather will be sunny with a high near 46 and a north northwest wind of 5 to 7 mph, the weather service said.
Tonight, there will be increasing clouds, with a low of 32 and a north wind of 3 to 5 mph, according to the weather service.
Thursday, there is an 80 percent chance of rain and snow. The first rain and snow may fall before 11 a.m., then rain between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., followed by rain and snow after 5 p.m., the weather service said. The high will be near 38 with a northeast wind of 6 mph. Less than a half-inch of snow is expected.
Thursday night, there is a 70 percent chance of rain and snow, becoming all snow after 7 p.m., according to the weather service. The low will be around 28 with a north northeast wind of 6 mph becoming northwest after midnight. Less than one inch of snow is expected.
Friday, it will be mostly sunny with a high near 38 and a west northwest wind of 6 to 14 mph, gusting as high as 20 mph, the weather service said.
Friday night, it will be mostly clear with a low of 19, according to the weather service.
Saturday, it will be sunny with a high near 39, the weather service said.
Saturday night, the low will be around 31 with partly cloudy skies, according to the weather service.
On Sunday, Veterans Day, the high will be near 47 with mostly sunny skies, the weather service said.
Sunday night, it will be mostly cloudy with a low of 30, according to the weather service.
Monday, it will be mostly sunny with a high near 41, the weather service said.
Monday night, the low will be around 24 with partly cloudy skies, according to the weather service.
Tuesday, it will be sunny with a high near 37, the weather service said.