TOPEKA — The newly formed United Kansas Party nominated Lawrence resident Scott Morgan to mount a campaign for Kansas secretary of state.
Morgan, who previously sought the statewide office as a Republican in 2014, said his goal was to make certain the state’s chief elections officer put interests of Kansas voters ahead of any attempt to create partisan advantages in politics.
“In Kansas, the secretary of state has traditionally been a quiet steward of elections and public trust,” Morgan said. “We should not allow this office to become yet another source of partisan conflict driven more by party interests than concern for Kansas voters.”
Morgan planned to file Wednesday as a United Kansas candidate for secretary of state. Others in the race include Democrats Jennifer Day of Mission and Samuel Lane of Shawnee, as well as Republican state Reps. Ken Rahjes of Agra and Pat Proctor of Leavenworth.
Morgan, who is an attorney and former owner of a publishing business, grew up in Shawnee and graduated from the University of Kansas with degrees in journalism and law. He worked in Washington, D.C., for U.S. Sen. Nancy Landon Kassebaum and later served as staff counsel to U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, both of Kansas. In addition, Morgan was chief counsel for Dole’s unsuccessful 1988 presidential campaign.
Morgan later served as chief counsel to GOP Gov. Mike Hayden before co-founding Morgan Quitno Press, a publisher of state and city statistical reference books and databases. He and his wife, Kathleen, sold the business to Congressional Quarterly. He served two terms on the Lawrence school board.
He said Kansans were eager for “calm competence in the administration of elections” instead of a continuation of the polarized political climate dominating U.S. politics. The goal would be to provide security and public confidence in the management of Kansas elections without unnecessarily inhibiting the opportunity for people to participate in elections, he said.
“We can do two things at once,” Morgan said. “We can constantly improve security and verification while also promoting participation and making it easier for eligible citizens to exercise their right to vote.”
In April, the Free State Party and United Kansas Party agreed to merge to better serve as a centrist alternative to influence of the dominant Democratic and Republican parties in Kansas. Morgan was a co-founder of the Free State Party and agreed to serve as executive director of United Kansas.
