Month: July 2022

Schwab’s campaign rebuffs election-integrity criticism from Kansas GOP rival Brown

Questions of security of voting process permeate race for secretary of state

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — The campaign of Secretary of State Scott Schwab pushed back Tuesday against Republican primary challenger Mike Brown’s attempt to blame the GOP incumbent for election administration mistakes in Rice and Douglas counties.

“Once again,” said Lydia Meiss, of the Schwab campaign, “Mike Brown is misrepresenting the facts for political gain, and fails to understand the role of the secretary of state’s office in election administration.”

Brown, a former Johnson County Commission member, has waged a campaign for secretary of state anchored to President Donald Trump’s baseless claims of 2020 election fraud and to allegations Schwab fell short in his role as the state’s top elections officer.

In texts to supporters, Brown touted a news story of the recent Kansas Court of Appeals decision declaring Schwab violated the Kansas Open Records Act. The appellate court said Schwab shouldn’t have instructed a company to switch off a computer software feature that made it easier for the public to access provisional ballot data.

Brown, of Overland Park, tried to link Schwab to mistakes by the Rice County clerk regarding inaccurate instructions to voters in a city council election and failure to forward two-dozen ballots to voters in a school ballot initiative. He suggested Schwab was responsible for a problem in Douglas County in which a printing company created duplicate ballots. Cards were sent to about 1,000 voters and local officials said procedures were in place to block double-voting.

Meiss, deputy campaign manager for Schwab, said Brown should be aware administrative mistakes would occur in the election process and often those situations were beyond jurisdiction of a secretary of state in Kansas. That was the case in Douglas and Rice counties, she said.

“The election administrative errors occurred at the local level, for a local election, where the secretary of state has no statutory authority to intervene,” she said. “Secretary Schwab has made it a priority to provide additional and enhanced training, resources and a training certification program to county election officials, beyond what is already required in state law. He will continue to do so in his second term.”

Schwab, who served Olathe in the Kansas House from 2009 to 2019, was elected secretary of state in 2018. He is seeking reelection to a second term and has repeatedly declared Kansas elections safe and secure.

Schwab was endorsed for reelection by former Gov. Sam Brownback and former U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts, who praised Schwab for increasing post-election audits, improving security of election equipment and opposing attempts by the federal government to take greater control of Kansas elections.

Brown, who lost a 2020 reelection campaign for Johnson County Commission, has faced criticism for praising an $856,000 grant from the Center for Tech and Civic Life to support Johnson County’s election operation in 2020. The money was part of Facebook executive Mark Zuckerberg’s initiative to offer grants to local governments struggling with challenges of COVID-19, and some conservatives have objected to infusion of that outside cash.

Schwab’s campaign issued a statement that said the secretary of state didn’t accept Zuckerberg funding, but questioned Brown’s decision to support the county’s use of that grant money.

Schwab’s campaign also accused Brown of accepting thousands of dollars in anonymous online donations in excess of amounts allowed by state law.

“Mike talks a lot about integrity. It’s just that — all talk,” the Schwab campaign said. “Time and time again, Mike failed to act with integrity. He didn’t act with integrity when he was county commissioner and he’s already proven that he won’t as secretary of state.”

On Tuesday, Brown turned to Facebook to question Schwab’s skills because the word “integrity” was misspelled on a state website listing of political organizations. The campaign-finance reporting site operated by the secretary of state’s office and the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission listed the Election Integrity organization as “Election Integrety.”

“Our failed Kansas secretary of state, ‘Skippy’ Schwab, knows so little about election integrity he can’t even spell it,” Brown said. “It would be funny if it weren’t so shameful.”

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/07/26/schwabs-campaign-rebuffs-late-campaign-criticism-from-kansas-gop-rival-brown/

Cooler temperatures continue today

From 1 to 1.5 inches of rain could fall in the area through Thursday. (National Weather Service graphic)
The extended outlook for Aug. 3 through Aug. 9 calls for above normal temperatures and below normal precipitation. (National Weather Service graphic)
Excessive heat is possible in the region from Aug. 3 to Aug. 9. (National Weather Service graphic)

Cooler temperatures will continue today through Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

Rain was tapering off this morning, and there are additional chances for rainfall tonight into Thursday morning, the weather service said.

Extreme heat returns next week, and excessive heat will become likely by mid-to-late next week, according to the weather service.

The weather service said there is a high risk for excessive heat across the region for Aug 3 and 4. There is a moderate risk for the excessive heat continuing through Aug. 6.

There is a high risk for excessive heat across our region for August 3rd and 4th. There is a moderate risk for this excessive heat continuing through August 6th

Today, there is a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 10 a.m., the weather service said. It will be cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 89 and a light and variable wind.

Tonight, there is a 60 percent chance of showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 1 a.m., with a low of 70 and a calm wind, according to the weather service. Between a quarter and half an inch of rain is possible.

Thursday, there is a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1 p.m., with a high near 83,the weather service said. A calm wind will become north northeast around 6 mph in the morning. Between a tenth and quarter-inch of rain is possible.

Thursday night, there is a 20 percent chance of showers after 1 a.m., with a low of 65, according to the weather service. A north northeast wind of 5 mph will become calm in the evening.

Friday, it will be partly sunny, with a high near 81 and a calm wind becoming east around 5 mph in the afternoon, the weather service said.

Friday night, there is a 20 percent chance of showers after 1 a.m., with a low of 64, according to the weather service. The low will be around 64.

Saturday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers, with a high near 81, the weather service said.

Saturday night, there is a 50 percent chance of showers after 1 a.m., with a low of 67, according to the weather service.

Sunday, there is a 50 percent chance of showers, with a high near 85, the weather service said.

Sunday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers, with a low of 70, according to the weather service.

Monday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 92, the weather service said.

Monday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 72, according to the weather service.

Tuesday, it will be sunny, with a high near 93, the weather service said.

Two candidates run for Republican nomination for 33rd District, Kansas House

Two candidates are seeking the Republican nomination in the 33rd District, Kansas House.

Clifton Boje and Mike Thompson are running for the Republican nomination.

Clifton Boje

Boje, 44, of Bonner Springs, said he is seeking office primarily to deal with the abortion issue.

“I want to see it criminalized as murder, for putting to death God’s creation unjustly,” he said.

Boje said he would support a proposed law that would classify abortion of living children as homicide. Homicide laws already in effect then would take care of the process, he said. A bill has been crafted and already was introduced, and would be reintroduced next session, he said.


Boje said the proposed law would not apply to miscarriages, or to cases in which the child dies at some point that is not part of an abortion. He said it would apply if the child is being put to death on purpose.


He said he spends a lot of time in front of Planned Parenthood offices, trying to convince women to let them help. (A video of Boje’s protest at a Planned Parenthood clinic, with arguments back and forth on loudspeakers, has been posted on YouTube by those who support pro-choice at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9QXcT4vA9Y.)

Boje teaches private music lessons and plays music for his church, Cornerstone Community Church. He is the founder of Acorn Performing Arts.

Boje has three associate degrees, including two in general studies and one in worship and music. His degrees were from Johnson County Community College and Kansas City College and Bible School, now called Kansas Christian College, in Overland Park. He studied music at the college level but did not complete his bachelor’s degree.

Besides his church membership, he is a member of Kansas Abortion Is Murder and Abolish Abortion Kansas.

Boje said the abortion issue is the main reason he ran, and he has been studying other issues that may come before the Legislature. He said he wants to see the government “doing its main job under what God has given it to do,” which is “to protect people and their personal property.” He also said people should be encouraged to be accountable in their actions.

See more information about Boje at bojeforkansashouse.mystrikingly.com.

Mike Thompson

Mike Thompson, 71, said he has lived a life of service, and now that he is retired, he would like to be of service to democracy.

That is one of the reasons he is running for office, he said.

Thompson served as an Army chaplain, and before that in the U.S. Navy as a SEAL. He retired as a lieutenant colonel.

“As a chaplain I’ve buried soldiers who have died for our freedom, and I do not take that lightly,” he said. “Instead of complaining, I always learned you get in and serve and work to make things better.”

Another reason he is running is that it’s time for a new voice in Wyandotte County, he said.

“What I can bring to the table is the new voice,” he said. His background demonstrates his integrity, honesty, commitment and loyalty, he said.

It also demonstrates the ability to relate to people of all diverse areas of life, being open-minded and listening to them, he said.

“Ninety percent of what I did in the hospital in the military was counseling, and I learned to listen and be open to both sides, and listen to what’s going on behind the presenting issues,” Thompson said.

As he goes door-to-door in the district, he hears people say they’re ready for a change, he said. The economy plays a role in that.

“If our community prospers, our citizens will prosper, and right now they’re struggling,” he said.

Thompson, who is not the meteorologist by the same name who serves currently in the Kansas Senate, is a retired military officer. He spent 22.5 years with the military, first in the Navy in the 1970s, where he served with the SEAL team, and later, returned to active duty with the Army as a chaplain at age 43.

He served as a command chaplain for the 82nd Airborne, and had different assignments through the years, retiring as garrison chaplain at Fort Leavenworth.

Between his Navy and Army service, he was a chaplain at several hospitals, doing a lot of grief counseling.

Thompson currently serves in his second term on the Bonner Springs City Council. One of his roles is liaison between Bonner Springs city and the Bonner Springs-Edwardsville area church ministers. He also volunteered at Vaughn-Trent Community Services and served as Tiblow Days car show chairman in 2012 and 2013.

Thompson has done undergraduate work at Pittsburg State University, then finished his degree at Dallas Baptist University. He has a Master of Divinity degree from Southwest Theological Seminary, Ft. Worth, Texas, and did internships at two hospitals.

Thompson currently teaches Sunday School at his church. He belongs to the VFW, American Legion and the UDT / SEAL Association. UDT stands for underwater demolition team, including Navy teams who dived in to help astronauts in space capsule recovery.

According to his campaign information, he also is a former Lenexa police officer and a former business owner of a welding shop in Oklahoma.

His campaign information also says he is in favor of growing jobs and wages, cutting wasteful spending, keeping neighborhoods safe, improving public safety, more funding for schools, more say for parents in education, putting families first, protecting constitutional rights and protecting the unborn.

He has endorsements from the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Kansans for Life.

Campaign finance reports filed this week at the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission stated that Thompson’s campaign had cash available of $25,062, raising $13,927.17 during the reporting period, expending $4,861.53 and having $20,200.47 cash on hand at the close of the period.

Boje’s campaign filed a statement that said he intended to receive or expend less than $1,000.

See more about Thompson’s campaign at https://thompsonforkansashouse.com/.

Voting details


Early voting in person is currently taking place in Wyandotte County.

Voting on Election Day, Aug. 2, is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at assigned polling places.

For more information about voting, see https://wyandotteonline.com/early-voting-in-person-starts-saturday/.


Visit the Wyandotte County Election Office website at wycovotes.org or call 913-573-8500 for more details on times and places to vote.


To see an updated map of Kansas House seat boundaries in Wyandotte County, and determine what district you are in, visit https://www.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/election-office/kshouseofrep24x36clip.pdf. Some boundaries recently changed.


Registered voters also can learn their district number and see what will be on their ballot at Voter View, https://myvoteinfo.voteks.org/VoterView.


To see a story about the Democratic candidates for the 33rd District, visit https://wyandotteonline.com/33rd-district-attracts-three-democratic-candidates/.


To reach Mary Rupert, editor, email [email protected].