2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas

The 2010 congressional elections in Kansas were held on November 2, 2010, and determined who would survive the state of Kansas in the United States House of Representatives. Kansas has 4 seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; the elected served in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013.

Overview

Results of the 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas by district:[1]

District	Republican		Democratic		Others		Total		Result
	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%
District 1	142,281	73.76%	44,068	22.85%	6,537	3.39%	192,886	100%	Republican Hold
District 2	130,034	63.13%	66,588	32.33%	9,353	4.54%	205,975	100%	Republican Hold
District 3	136,246	58.40%	90,193	38.66%	6,846	2.93%	233,285	100%	Republican Gain
District 4	119,575	58.79%	74,143	36.45%	9,665	4.75%	203,383	100%	Republican Hold
Total	528,136	63.21%	274,992	32.91%	32,401	3.88%	835,529	100%

2010 election results by district

District 1

When incumbent Republican Congressman Jerry Moran opted to run for Senate instead of seeking an eighth term in Congress, creating an open seat. Republican State Senator Tim Huelskamp won in a crowded Republican primary that included Jim Barnett, a fellow State Senator and the 2006 Republican nominee for Governor; Rob Wasinger, the former Chief of Staff to retiring Senator Sam Brownback; Sue Boldra, a college instructor; Tracey Mann, a real estate agent; and Monte Shadwick, the former Mayor of Salina. Huelskamp faced Alan Jilka, the Democratic nominee and another former Mayor of Salina and Jack Warner, the Libertarian candidate. As was expected in this solidly conservative[2] district that encompasses almost two-thirds of the state, Huelskamp overwhelmingly defeated Jilka and Warner and won his first term to Congress.

Polling

Poll Source	Dates Administered	Tim Huelskamp (R)	Alan Jilka (D)	Jack Warner (L)	Undecided
Survey USA	October 5–6, 2010	63%	26%	5%	6%
SurveyUSA	August 5–8, 2010	65%	23%	7%	5%

Results

Kansas's 1st congressional district election, 2010[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Tim Huelskamp	142,281	73.76
	Democratic	Alan Jilka	44,068	22.85
	Libertarian	Jack Warner	6,537	3.39
Total votes			192,886	100.00
	Republican hold

District 2

Freshman incumbent Republican Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins, who was initially sent to Congress after defeating previous Congresswoman Nancy Boyda in 2008, was the only member of the Kansas congressional delegation to seek re-election this cycle. This conservative[2] district that consists of most of eastern Kansas normally elects Republicans by large margins,[4] so Congresswoman Jenkins was in no real danger of losing her seat to the Democratic nominee, community organizer Cheryl Hudspeth. Though Democrats hoped to make hay out of Jenkins’ claim that Republicans needed a "great white hope" to challenge President Obama,[5] Jenkins was not vulnerable in the slightest and was overwhelmingly elected to her second term.

Results

Kansas's 2nd congressional district election, 2010[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Lynn Jenkins (incumbent)	130,034	63.13
	Democratic	Cheryl Hudspeth	66,588	32.33
	Libertarian	Robert Garrard	9,353	4.54
Total votes			205,975	100.00
	Republican hold

District 3

This conservative-leaning[2] district, which is based in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the college town of Lawrence, has been represented by Democratic Congressman Dennis Moore since he was first elected in 1998. This year, however, Moore declined to seek a seventh term to Congress, calling for a "new generation of leadership."[6] On the Republican side, State Representative Kevin Yoder emerged from a crowded primary and became the Republican nominee, while Stephene Moore, a nurse and the wife of the retiring Congressman, won the Democratic nomination. Though the race was marked by sharp disagreement between Yoder and Moore,[7] it was not a close election and Yoder was sent to Congress with a whopping twenty-point margin of victory.

Results

Kansas's 3rd congressional district election, 2010[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Kevin Yoder	136,246	58.40
	Democratic	Stephene Moore	90,193	38.66
	Libertarian	Jasmin Talbert	6,846	2.93
Total votes			233,285	100.00
	Republican gain from Democratic

District 4

Based around metro Wichita and rural counties in the south-central region of Kansas, this conservative[2] district has been represented by Republican Congressman Todd Tiahrt since he was first elected in the Republican Revolution of 1994. This year, though, Congressman Tiahrt declined to seek a ninth term and opted to run for U.S. Senate instead. In the Republican primary, businessman Mike Pompeo edged out several rivals, including State Senator Jean Schodorf and businessman Wink Hartman. State Representative Raj Goyle, who raised eyebrows when he was elected to represent a conservative area in the Kansas House of Representatives, became the Democratic nominee. The general election was contentious, and sparks flew when the Pompeo campaign tweeted a link to a controversial blog that referred to Goyle as "just another 'turban topper' we don’t need in Congress or any political office that deals with the U.S. Constitution, Christianity, and the United States of America!"[8] The tweet, recommending the piece as a "good read", led to an apology from Pompeo.[9] The Goyle camp attacked Pompeo for what they called "bigoted attacks" when a supporter of the Republican candidate sponsored billboards that said "Vote American, [v]ote Pompeo" and "True Americans vote for Pompeo."[10] Pompeo went on to defeat Goyle, 59%-36%.[11]

Polling

Poll source	Dates administered	Mike Pompeo (R)	Raj Goyle (D)	David Moffett/Shawn Smith* (L)	Undecided
Survey USA	October 25–28, 2010	54%	38%	2%*	2%
Cole Hargrave	October 10–11, 2010	48%	31%	-	-
Survey USA	October 6–7, 2010	53%	40%	2%*	3%
Survey USA	September 14–15, 2010	50%	40%	3%	4%
Gerstein Agne	September 8–9, 2010	46%	46%	-	-
Gerstein Agne	August 10–12, 2010	50%	47%	-	-
Survey USA	August 9–11, 2010	49%	42%	4%	5%

Results

Kansas's 4th congressional district election, 2010[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mike Pompeo	119,575	58.79
	Democratic	Raj Goyle	74,143	36.45
	Reform	Susan G. Ducey	5,041	2.48
	Libertarian	Shawn Smith	4,624	2.27
Total votes			203,383	100.00
	Republican hold

References

1. Haas, Karen L. (June 3, 2011). "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010". Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
2. "Partisan Voting Index Districts of the 111th Congress." The Cook Political Report. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 June 2011. <http://www.cookpolitical.com/sites/default/files/pvistate.pdf%5B%5D>.
3. http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/2010election.pdf
4. Kansas's 2nd congressional district#Recent Election Results
5. http://www.politicsdaily.com/2009/08/27/rep-lynn-jenkins-calls-for-great-white-hope-to-thwart-obama/
6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-12-01. Retrieved 2011-06-20.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-08-27. Retrieved 2011-06-20.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-04-02. Retrieved 2011-06-20.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
9. Stein, Sam (August 12, 2010). "Mike Pompeo, GOP Candidate, Apologizes For Tweet Attacking Challenger As An 'Evil' 'Turban Topper', Could-Be Muslim". The Huffington Post. New York City. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
10. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/31/raj-goyle-mike-pompeo-billboard_n_776659.html
11. "House Results Map". The New York Times.

External links

• Elections from the Kansas Secretary of State
  • Official candidate lists
• U.S. Congress candidates for Kansas at Project Vote Smart
• Kansas U.S. House from OurCampaigns.com
• Campaign contributions for U.S. Congressional races in Kansas from OpenSecrets.org
• 2010 Kansas General Election graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com
• House - Kansas from the Cook Political Report
• News coverage from The Midwest Democracy Project at The Kansas City Star