Last week, the Heritage Foundation (Wikipedia, RWW) and the Kansas Policy Institute (Wikipedia, SourceWatch) held a small gathering at a local country club. They had invited Stephen Moore, economist and former member of the Wall Street Journal's editorial board, to speak.

What will it take to get you to vote? Or your friends? Your family? Which issue is most important to you? Is it education? Then this week's report from the Kansas Center for Economic Growth should set you to organizing a voting party on November 4.

On Friday, Governor Sam Brownback of Kansas appointed Caleb Stegall to the Kansas Supreme Court. This completes a coup so arrogant, so contemptuous of the separation of powers, so disrespectful of the people of Kansas, that it leaves us gasping.

Passion. Shouting. Not backing down. These are, increasingly, the hallmarks of politics today. There are many calls for civility, for a return to the statesmen (and women) who used to haggle and argue and compromise to reach a position that would move our country forward. But those calls for moderation are too often drowned out by the inflamed passions on either side.

Statewide in the primaries last week, the turnout (still unofficial) was 20%. That means that one in five registered voters in Kansas bothered to vote.

On August 5th, moderate voters got out there and voted. As a result, every moderate incumbent in the Kansas Legislature kept their seat, and a few extremists lost theirs.

Advance voting has begun, and will continue right up until noon on Monday August 4th. If you have not yet voted, you should consider the advantages of voting on your own schedule, at your own convenience.

Happy Independence Day! On this day celebrating our great nation, we encourage all our members and supporters to remember that voting is both a right and a duty.

We've spent a lot of time talking about state level races, as all the KS State Representatives are up for re-election is year. And the Legislative session over which they presided was a lopsided, grasping, regulatory mess. See our review here.

But there are other important races down the ticket, and even off the ticket (did you vote in municipal elections this Spring?), which moderates should be watching.

This article includes a correction to the information sent out originally. The primary opponents in District 19 are Stephanie Clayton (R) and Jennifer Flood (R).

The first deadline in the election season is rapidly approaching. June 30 (a week from this Monday) is the last day to change your party affiliation before the primaries on August 5.

While each party excludes the other from voting in their primary contests, both are required by law to allow Unaffiliated voters (the third party affiliation option in KS) to declare a party and vote at the primaries on election day. This allows the Unaffiliated voter to vote in either primary contest, and preserves that voter's right to be represented by their elected officials.