How Laura Kelly’s Win in Kansas Could Be a Blueprint for Southern Democrats

Laura Kelly posted her big little win in Kansas by just 1.4 percent.

Her margin of victory was slim, but just hours prior her chances had appeared close to none as the only Democratic leader up for re-election in a state that Trump won in 2020.

Her opponent, three-term Republican state attorney general Derek Schmidt had even received Trump’s “complete and total endorsement” as a “popular and very wise choice.”

“Derek is strong on Crime, the Borders, and our always under siege Second Amendment,” Trump said.

Early on, Schmidt adopted a Trumpian strategy of name calling—dubbing Kelly “Lockdown Laura” for having closed schools and restricted businesses during the early stages of the pandemic. He blamed her for the economic devastation and educational disruption caused by COVID-19, and even made a website lockdownlaura.com to lambast her efforts to slow the virus’s spread during the pandemic’s first months. He also attacked her for vetoing a bill banning transgender athletes in schools.

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Kelly chose not to get entangled in the issues by which Trumpists seek to rabble-rouse. She instead concentrated on creating new businesses and jobs—a strategy that can lead other Democrats to prevail over the self-serving charlatans who seek to divide us.

While her opponent posted nonsense, Kelly reported the opening of new factories and improvements in infrastructure and extension of broadband to rural areas.

“Job creation, business investment, and workforce development—three of my top priorities where we are clearly making progress. Kansas outstrips the nation as a whole when it comes to ensuring people have the high-quality jobs they need to provide for their families,” she tweeted on Nov. 4.

Kelly had managed to beat out Oklahoma for a $4 billion Panasonic electric vehicle battery plant that will employ as many as 4,000. She presided at the ground-breaking in De Soto six days before the election.

“We are breaking ground at the biggest economic development project in the history of our state,” she exclaimed.

She could have stopped there and had a sound bite for the news and maybe a campaign ad. But she continued on with a story that began with a phone call Lieutenant Governor Toland received from businessman James Ketter in Kansas City.

“James offered his congratulations, but his real reason for calling was to find out how to get in touch with Panasonic’s HR team,” Kelly recounted. “You see, James’ son, Ben, left the area to get his Ph.D. in battery technology at the University of Chicago. Ben’s specific area of study is—and let me try to get this right—‘quantitative thin film characterization of ion transport at the interfaces of polymer and ceramic solid electrolytes.’ I have no idea what any of that means, but I bet Panasonic’s engineers do.”

Kelly went on, “James explained that he always assumed that his son would never return home because there wouldn’t be enough opportunities for him. That is until Panasonic selected De Soto. Now, there are opportunities for Ben closer to home. And we’ve been actively involved in ensuring these opportunities bring more young people to Kansas.”

She added, “Very actively involved, I should say—maybe too involved. I know the lieutenant governor personally sent Ben’s résumé to the Panasonic team. He’s probably agreed to serve as a reference and interview coach, too. “

She concluded, “So, when I say that economic development in my administration is about people, this is what I mean. We are working to make it possible for Ben, and so many others like him, to stay in or come to Kansas . We’re making it possible for them to live and raise their families here so that this state continues to grow for generations to come.

She ended with a saying in Latin: “Ad Astra Per Aspera.”

That translates to “From Hardship to the Stars.” And there could be no better guide words for the Democrats, who were once the party of working people.

The party can see that history in Kelly, whose other events in recent weeks included the opening of a 140,000-square-foot distribution center for a 400,000-square-foot frozen pizza facility run by Schwan’s Co. in Salina. She also attended a ribbon cutting for a $403 million, 2,000-job distribution center in Kansas City, Kanas for URBN, which includes a variety of brands such as Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie. And there was the grand opening of a Plumbers & Pipefitters Apprenticeship Training Center in an old Babies ‘R’ Us store in Wichita. And she got one endorsement her opponent could not match.

“Thank you to Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 441 for your ongoing support,” she tweeted.

In her efforts, Kelly has consistently sought bipartisan support. Where Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign mounted a “Don’t Tread on Florida Tour,” Kelly had a “Meet Me In the Middle Tour.”

The national nonpartisan Common Ground Committee named her a “Common Ground Champion” last month.

“I have worked with Kansans of all political stripes to balance the budget, fully fund our schools, build a record-breaking economy, axe taxes, and invest in our law enforcement and infrastructure,” she said. “I am proud that my record reflects my commitment to working across the aisle to find common-sense solutions.”

Back in 2018, Kelly was elected to her first term after defeating Kris Kobach, then the Kansas Secretary of State. Kobach was closely allied with Trump, demonized immigrants and had connections with white supremacists and antisemites. Following the 2020 election, he subsequently became active in efforts to overturn the vote.

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In what was described as a comeback, Kobach ran for Kansas attorney general this year against a centrist Democrat, Chris Mann, a former police officer. Kobach ran a pro-capital punishment campaign ad that included a film clip of of a person of color who was apparently intended to represent a cop killer, but was in fact Tiger Woods being arrested for driving while intoxicated.

Kobach won by 2.4 percent of the vote—a slender margin, but 1 percentage point more than Kelly received in winning a second term as governor. Both races were marginally complicated by ticket splitters who drew negligible votes.

Kansas remains Trumpian enough to have Kobach as its attorney general, but it is also a state where slightly more than half the electorate was won over by the middle-of-the-road approach its governor takes to a host of issues other than economic development.

In her victory speech on Wednesday, Kelly made clear that she intends to continue leading from the middle—and hopes the entire state will join her.

“Kansans voted for strong public schools, for economic growth, for balanced budgets, and for protecting individual rights—including a woman’s right to make her own health-care decisions,” she said. “Perhaps above all, I believe Kansans voted today for civility, for cooperation, for listening to one another, and for a spirit of bi-partisan problem-solving, that’s become all too rare in our politics today.”

“I spoke a lot in this campaign about my middle-of-the-road approach, because governing from the middle is important. Everyone is tired of hyper-partisanship and vitriol in our politics—and everyone’s tired of being at each other’s throats… When you look at the successes we’ve achieved these first 4 years, we’ve done it by working together”

She predicted a bright future for Kansas that will make her big little win ever bigger.

“Now, we get back to work,” she said.

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