In the Kansas governor’s race, Republican nominee Kris Kobach has picked up a major bipartisan endorsement.
On Friday, the Kansas State Council of Firefighters announced they are supporting Kobach, even though the group has historically backed Democrats. According to one political expert, the “unusual” endorsement is likely to be “helpful” for Kobach’s campaign.
While Kansas Democrat gubernatorial nominee Laura Kelly is only appealing to her far-left base, Kris Kobach is actually reaching out across the aisle and gaining bipartisan support.
The Kansas City Star reports:
Four years ago, the Kansas State Council of Firefighters endorsed Paul Davis, a Lawrence Democrat, running against then-Gov. Sam Brownback, a Republican. Now, the union is endorsing firebrand conservative and Donald Trump loyalist Kris Kobach.
Kobach, Kansas’ Republican secretary of state and a candidate for governor, won the union’s endorsement Friday, though labor unions typically back Democrats. He announced the endorsement in Wichita, saying it was — as he understood — the first time in his lifetime the union endorsed a Republican. He was the only Republican to address the labor union’s annual conference earlier this summer.
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Bob Beatty, a political science professor at Washburn University in Topeka, said it was unusual to see the union back a Republican, but he predicted the endorsement would be helpful for Kobach.
