Mark Gilstrap, a former state senator, is a Republican candidate for state representative in the 36th District.
The seat is held by Rep. Kathy Wolfe Moore, a Democrat who has filed for re-election.
Gilstrap is retired after 33 years service in the finance department of the Unified Government.
“In retiring from the Unified Government, I value the KPERS public retirement system and will not allow it to be used for any legislators’ or governor’s wish list,” Gilstrap stated in a news release.
Gilstrap has a Bachelor of Science in business administration degree from Rockhurst College and is a 1970 graduate of Bishop Ward High School.
Rep. Wolfe Moore has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work from the University of Kansas, and is a 1975 graduate of Bishop Ward High School.
At a candidate forum on Oct. 7 sponsored by Business West and Kansas City Kansas Community College, Rep. Wolfe Moore said she has served as state representative for 10 years and it has been an honor to represent the 36th District. She has worked as community liaison for 15 years for the University of Kansas Medical Center, and 10 years prior to that as chief of staff for former Mayor Carol Marinovich.
Gilstrap also has run for the 5th District, state Senate, and for the Unified Government Commission, 1st District at large.
Gilstrap, who wasn’t at the candidate forum, said in a news release that he shares the views of the majority of his constituents on social issues.
“We must allow the people to have a voice on abortion laws through their legislators,” he stated. “The courts must not override the will of the people.”
From 1997 through 2008, Gilstrap played a role in helping legislation pass to allow the Kansas Speedway and Legends development. In those years, he was a Democrat.
Rep. Wolfe Moore is a former chief of staff to former Mayor Marinovich, who is largely credited with bringing Kansas Speedway and Legends development to the area. Rep. Wolfe Moore also is a former chair of the board for the Wyandotte Economic Development Council, a nonprofit economic development corporation.
“I was privileged to cast the deciding vote to allow Wyandotte County voters to be able to vote for a casino,” Gilstrap stated in the news release.
“Voters of the 36th House district will have a clear choice in November, and I think they will choose someone who has a strong record of bringing in millions of dollars of revenue and thousands of jobs into our community,” he said.
Rep. Wolfe Moore is on the House Appropriations Committee and the House Legislative Budget Committee, where she is ranking minority member of both. She is also on the House Taxation Committee, and was on the special 2019 committee to expand Medicaid.
While Rep. Wolfe Moore said she enjoys serving in the Legislature, it has become more partisan through the years. Last year, she joined with Rep. Steven Johnson, a Republican, to introduce a training program on civil discourse for legislators, she said during the candidate forum.
The point of the program was to allow legislators to get to know each other personally, establish friendships, which makes a difference. Instead of talking at each other, they’re talking to each other, which is the first step toward compromise and getting better legislation, she said.
One of her biggest interests has been mental health and getting expanded services for people who deal with mental health issues, she said. This year, Rep. Wolfe Moore received the Legislative Mental Health Champion Award for 2020 from the Association of Community Mental Health Centers of Kansas for her passion for improving mental health policy in the state of Kansas.
Rep. Wolfe Moore also serves on the state SPARKS task force, which has decided where the federal CARES Act funding will be allocated in Kansas.
She supports Medicaid expansion, and said at the candidate forum that it would have been wonderful to have it during the pandemic, as many people who lost their jobs and then lost their health insurance might qualify for Medicaid expansion, and at least would have had health care while trying to get through the pandemic the best they can.
