Monica Murnan

Monica Murnan (born May 25, 1966) is an American politician and early childhood advocate who served as a Democratic member of the Kansas House of Representatives. Murnan represented the 3rd district, covering the city of Pittsburg, from 2017-2020. She served as the Ranking Minority member on the Health and Human Services committee.[1]

Monica Murnan
Member of the Kansas House of Representatives
from the 3rd district
In office
January 9, 2017 – January 11,2020
Preceded byChuck Smith
Succeeded byChuck Smith
Personal details
Born (1966-05-25) May 25, 1966
Parsons, Kansas, US
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materPittsburg State University
(BS, MS)

In addition to serving in the Kansas Legislature, Murnan works as the Director of the Center of Community Supports at Greenbush, an education service center that provides support to school districts across southeast Kansas.[2]

Professional career

Murnan was born in Parsons, Kansas and raised in Erie, Kansas. After receiving a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education from Pittsburg State University in 1988, she moved to Wichita, Kansas with her husband, Rob, to teach kindergarten and 1st grade. In 1992, she returned to Pittsburg to pursue a Master's degree in School Administration and grow her family.

Beginning in 1995, Murnan served as the first Executive Director of the Family Resource Center ("The Center"). In this role, she worked to collaborate with the Pittsburg community to provide families access to a diverse set of child care services. During her time at The Center, the organization grew from 30 employees and a $300,000 budget to 100 employees and a $3 million budget. Murnan wrote grant applications, managed staff, and led the effort to acquire a new facility. In 2013, Murnan accepted a position as the Director of Student Support Services with Greenbush Southeast Kansas Education Service, where she helped to provide in-home services to infants with disabilities, coordinates Medicaid billing for over 1/3 of the school districts in the state, and provides professional development to teachers and administrators. In December 2020, Murnan became the Director of the newly formed Center of Community Supports at Greenbush. The Center of Community Supports acts as a focal point of communication and connection to a broad range of services that help with early learning, healthcare, behavioral health, research & evaluation, and more.[3]

Political career

Pittsburg City Commission

In 2013, Murnan successfully ran for one of three at-large seats on the Pittsburg City Commission, receiving the most votes of any candidate in the race.[4] As Commissioner, Murnan supported the passage of bonds to fund utility construction for a new state-owned casino in Pittsburg,[5] voted to invest city funds toward the construction of a new track-and-field center at Pittsburg State University,[6] and approved plans to expand parts of Atkinson Municipal Airport.[7] Murnan also criticized then-Governor Sam Brownback's budget decision to delay the planned expansion of a dangerous two-lane stretch of US-69 highway, stating the citizens of Pittsburg "have repeatedly been told this project was going to happen. It's a huge blow to us, we’ve been waiting patiently."[8]

Kansas House of Representatives

In 2016, Murnan filed to run as a Democrat for the Kansas House of Representatives' 3rd district seat against the Republican incumbent, Representative Chuck Smith,[9] citing that she "felt the state was in a dire circumstance, near bankruptcy and did not resemble the state she remember[ed] growing up in." The district was a high-priority target for Kansas Democrats, as Smith had won the swing district from its previous Democratic occupant Julie Menghini by just 114 votes in 2014.[10] Campaigning against unpopular Governor Sam Brownback[11] and Smith's votes in support of his agenda, Murnan emerged victorious by a four-point margin. She was re-elected by a 10-point margin in 2018.[12] Murnan was narrowly defeated in a 2020 rematch with Smith.

During the 2018 Kansas gubernatorial election, Murnan endorsed the eventual nominee, State Senator Laura Kelly, in the Democratic primary.[13] Kelly would go on to defeat Republican Kris Kobach and Independent Greg Orman in the general election, becoming the 48th Governor of Kansas.

Murnan spoke at the 2019 Women's March in Pittsburg on January 19.[14]

2019–2020 committee membership
  • Health and Human Services
  • Rural Revitalization
  • Social Services Budget
  • Joint Committee on Home and Community Based Services

Elections
Kansas House of Representatives 3rd district election, 2020[15]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Chuck Smith 4,942 53.9
Democratic Monica Murnan (Incumbent) 4,213 46.0
Total votes 9,165 100.0
Republican gain from Democratic
Kansas House of Representatives 3rd district election, 2018[16]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Monica Murnan (incumbent) 3,906 54.8
Republican Terry Calloway 3,223 45.2
Total votes 7,129 100.0
Democratic hold
Kansas House of Representatives 3rd district election, 2016[17]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Monica Murnan 4,351 52.5
Republican Chuck Smith (incumbent) 3,939 47.5
Total votes 8,290 100.0
Democratic gain from Republican
Pittsburg City Commission at-large district election, 2013[18]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan Monica Murnan 869 17.7
Nonpartisan Chuck Munsell 734 15.0
Nonpartisan Michael Gray 732 14.9
Nonpartisan Dave Holloman 716 14.6
Nonpartisan Ralph McGeorge 701 14.3
Nonpartisan Cheryl Mayo 497 10.1
Nonpartisan Leatha Bolinger 439 9.0
Nonpartisan William Wilper 193 3.9
Total votes 4,899 100.0

References
  1. "Representative Monica Murnan". Kslegislature.org. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  2. "About Monica". monicaforkansas.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  3. "About Monica". monicaforkansas.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  4. "2013 City/School General Election Unofficial Results". crawfordcountykansas.org. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  5. "Pittsburg plans to issue up to $6.5 million in bonds to build utilities for state-owned casino". joplinglobe.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  6. "Campus, community gather to open Plaster Center". pittstate.edu. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  7. "Pittsburg moves on airport design". morningsun.net. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  8. "Gov. Sam Brownback's vow to mend 'dangerous' Kansas highway now casualty of budget crisis". gctelegram.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  9. "Local contested races shaping up". morningsun.net. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  10. "Primary results energize Medicaid expansion advocates". khi.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  11. "Unpopular at home, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback nominated for State Department post". NPR. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
  12. "Monica Murnan". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  13. "RELEASE: Democratic leaders endorse Laura Kelly for Kansas". laurakellyforkansas.com. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  14. "SEK NOW to lead Women's March on Saturday". MorningSun.net. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  15. "November 3, 2020 Official Results" (PDF). Crawford County, KS Elections Office. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  16. "November 6, 2018 Official Results" (PDF). Crawford County, KS Elections Office. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  17. "November 8, 2016 Official Results". Crawford County, KS Elections Office. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  18. "2013 City/School General Election Unofficial Results". crawfordcountykansas.org. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
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