LEAVENWORTH, Kansas Republican former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach announced Monday that hes running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Pat Roberts.
Kobach beat then-Gov. Jeff Colyer in the primary election last year helped partly by a last-minute endorsement from President Donald Trump but ultimately lost the governors race to Democrat Laura Kelly.
Now, the politician whos made a career battling immigration and claiming voter fraud is rampant, says he wants to take his confrontational politics to Capitol Hill.
The Washington establishment is not going to get what they want, Kobach said at an event in Leavenworth announcing the campaign.
Kobach is a conservative firebrand, but his campaign had lackluster fundraising and largely relied on money from his running mate. Some Republicans criticized Kobachs campaign after the election loss for not focusing enough on fundraising and voter turnout.
The former secretary of state said running for Senate will not be like his campaign for governor.
Raising money is different in a Senate campaign, Kobach said. Ill be raising that money differently and I think youll see some surprising results.
A filing to the federal government for a committee called Kobach for Senate initially misspelled Kobachs first name as Chris, but was later corrected. Signs printed for his announcement in Leavenworth read: Less government, more liberty and Build the wall.
Kobach takes a hard line on illegal immigration, one of his signature issues, and has had close ties to Trump, who endorsed Kobach the day before the primary election last year.
Our borders are being overrun, he said Monday. The calls for socialism on the left get louder and louder and they dont stop. If not for the election of Donald Trump, I think our nation would be in a steep, downward spiral right now.
Kobach said he had spoken with the president in recent days about immigration. In fact, he was considered a candidate to lead the Department of Homeland Security, although his reported demands for the job drew negative publicity.
It became very clear to me that the president needs someone who will lead the charge for him in the United States Senate, Kobach said.
The Republican field is filling with well-known contenders either exploring a race or outright running. That includes U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall of western Kansas, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, Kansas Treasurer Jake LaTurner and Senate President Susan Wagle.
Another potential candidate is the one Kobach beat in the GOP primary last year, former Gov. Jeff Colyer. Handicappers would likely mark U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who represented Wichita in the U.S. House, a heavy favorite for the Republican nomination if he chose to get in the race.
Kansans havent sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since the 1930s. This year, former U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom and former U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda have announced campaigns. Democrats are coming off victories last year with heightened interest in the Senate race.
