NPRKansas
Goldstein: —Tone: —
Kansas Democratic gubernatorial candidate, State Sen. Cindy Holscher speaks to reporters after casting her ballot during early voting at a polling location on October 31, 2026 in Kansas City, Kansas. Jim Vondruska/Getty Images hide caption
Midterms coverage: Live results | What to know | Stories around the country Stay connected: NPR Politics Podcast | NPR Politics newsletter | NPR app
Democratic state Sen. Cindy Holscher will hold onto the Kansas governor's office for her party after defeating Republican Ty Masterson, according to a race call by the Associated Press.
Masterson, the president of the state Senate, was endorsed by President Trump. Of the 36 elections for governor across the country, Kansas was seen as the most likely to flip from Democratic to Republican control.
Current Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is term-limited after serving for eight years in a state with a heavily Republican legislature and that usually votes for Republicans for other offices and in presidential elections.
Holscher, 57, ran a campaign with notes of populism, promising to fight "sweetheart deals" for billionaires. She tied Masterson to his work in the state Senate when it passed a tax cut under former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback that led to a series of budget crises and was later repealed.
Holscher opposed school vouchers, calling for more support for public schools, in contrast with Masterson, who backed school vouchers . She also called for a moratorium on new data centers and for legalizing cannabis as a way to generate state revenue.
Masterson, 57, called for lower property taxes and said faith influenced all his decisions, including in politics. He promised to be the "most pro-ag, pro-business, pro-oil and gas governor ," the state has seen. He called Holscher, "the most radical, liberal, socialist Democrat ever" on a ticket in Kansas.
"He likes to throw around a whole lot of labels," Holscher responded. "You know why? Because that's all he's got."
NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews. Anyone who makes such an offer or request is not an NPR employee and does not represent NPR.
Open article →NPRKansas
Goldstein: —Tone: —
State Sen. Cindy Holscher has won the race for Kansas governor, keeping the office for Democrats in a state that leans Republican. Here she's seen speaking to reporters after casting her ballot during early voting at a polling location in Kansas City, Kansas. Jim Vondruska/Getty Images hide caption
Democratic state Sen. Cindy Holscher will hold onto the Kansas governor's office for her party after defeating Republican Ty Masterson, according to a race call by the Associated Press.
Masterson, the president of the state Senate, was endorsed by President Trump. Of the 36 elections for governor across the country, Kansas was seen as the most likely to flip from Democratic to Republican control.
The race call came after days of counting the provisional ballots and with local officials doing recounts in the closely contested election.
Current Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is term-limited after serving for eight years in a state with a heavily Republican legislature and that usually votes for Republicans for other offices and in presidential elections.
Holscher, 57, ran a campaign with notes of populism, promising to fight "sweetheart deals" for billionaires. She tied Masterson to his work in the state Senate when it passed a tax cut under former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback that led to a series of budget crises and was later repealed.
Holscher opposed school vouchers, calling for more support for public schools, in contrast with Masterson, who backed school vouchers . She also called for a moratorium on new data centers and for legalizing cannabis as a way to generate state revenue.
Masterson, 57, called for lower property taxes and said faith influenced all his decisions, including in politics. He promised to be the "most pro-ag, pro-business, pro-oil and gas governor ," the state has seen. He called Holscher, "the most radical, liberal, socialist Democrat ever" on a ticket in Kansas.
"He likes to throw around a whole lot of labels," Holscher responded. "You know why? Because that's all he's got."
NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews. Anyone who makes such an offer or request is not an NPR employee and does not represent NPR.
Open article →NBCKansas
Tone: 100.0
Democratic state Sen. Cindy Holscher has narrowly won Kansas’ race for governor , NBC News projected Thursday, extending the party’s hold on the office in the red state.
Holscher defeated Republican state Senate President Ty Masterson, who was backed by President Donald Trump , to succeed two-term Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.
While Trump carried Kansas — a state where registered Republicans outnumber registered Democrats nearly 2 to 1 — by double digits in the latest three presidential elections, polling had shown a close race down the stretch due mostly to voter frustrations with Trump and his handling of the economy. Democrats also benefited from increased attention on the traditionally conservative state as its Senate race tightened.
Holscher’s victory came despite a nearly 3-to-1 Republican ad spending advantage in the general election, according to ad-tracking firm AdImpact.
In the general election, Holscher aggressively tied Masterson to Trump, while also maintaining that she’d find areas to work with the administration.
“I think that’s a concern that [Masterson] has the ear of the administration, because the administration also has a hold on him. You won’t see Ty Masterson pushing back against bad policy, like tariffs that are hurting our farmers or the importing of beef that are hurting our ranchers,” she told local news station KMBC in October. She added that will also “work with folks” in the administration “to make sure we bring good things to Kansas.”
Masterson, who was endorsed by Trump, attempted to distance himself from the president on his website and in campaign materials . But his connection to Trump, who faced increasingly lower approval ratings in the traditionally red state, was unmistakable: the president came to Kansas over the last weekend before Election Day to campaign alongside Masterson and the Republican candidate in the state’s Senate race, Sen. Roger Marshall, who lost his re-election bid to Democrat Adam Hamilton .
Meanwhile, Holscher also prominently highlighted her opposition to new data center construction throughout her campaign.
“This field of Kansas sunflowers is under threat because big tech wants to build a day out of center. As governor, I’ll hit pause on data centers until we can set up firm guardrails to protect our communities and our budgets,” she said in one spot featuring her standing in a field .
Masterson has opposed a moratorium on data centers and has defended a 2025 law he voted for giving a sales tax exemption for data center investments. Holscher has called for a statewide moratorium on the new data center construction. Building the Future, a pro-data center super PAC, jumped into the race last month to boost Masterson.
Holscher’s win followed a primary that featured Democratic infighting. Kelly, who has maintained strong job approval ratings in the state, had endorsed Holscher’s Democratic primary opponent, state Sen. Ethan Corson, and issued stark warnings to voters about being “very concerned about the direction Kansas will go in” if Holscher were to win.
Holscher had run a more progressive-styled campaign, while Corson ran as a moderate. Kelly endorsed Holscher following the primary.
I cover state legislatures, politics and policy — and how those topics coalesce into and intersect with national political trends. Given what state lawmakers have focused on in recent years, my coverage areas tend to veer into reproductive rights, voting rights and education policy. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, and I try to make my native state proud by covering as many of its fascinating political stories as I can.
Open article →