In my first diary in this series, I described my situation, my feelings about Kansas, and my reasons for moving to Oregon. (
Read here.) In this post I thought I would describe the political situation in Kansas in a little more detail, to give myself solid grounds for comparison.
I am simply an average Kansas citizen, not especially involved in local politics, though I make a point of being informed about the issues and candidates we get. I have always voted, and consider that the basic requirement for being an active participant in our democracy. I do some phone calling for Democratic candidates now and then, when there are any and they need help.
So, where is Kansas economically, socially, and politically? I'm no expert, as I've said, but I have compiled a few figures and impressions in this diary.
I don't want this series to overstate the redness of Kansas as a place, and I certainly don't want to come across as discarding all Kansans in the same bin. No region is 100% Republican or 100% Democrat, and we'd be unrealistic to assume that it is. Kansas is no exception. But there are some features of Kansas politics I want to describe- I am not saying these are unique features, or that Kansas is completely different from the rest of the country. Completely the opposite, in fact. I'm talking about Kansas in an effort to make the whole country's situation a little clearer.
First, let me give you some quick facts about Kansas. The demographics are meaningful to this discussion, I think, so I'll spend a little time on this.
(Census data from http://quickfacts.census.gov/...)
Kansas Statistics
Population, 2005: 2,744,687
Percent change, 2000-2005: Up 2.1% compared to up 5.3% for the whole country
Percent of population identifying as white, not Hispanic, 2004: 81.9% compared to 67.4% for the whole country
Percent of residents foreign born, 2004: 5%, compared to 11.1% for the whole country
Persons below poverty line, 2003: 10.4% compared to 12.5% in the whole country
By County
Richest county: Johnson (northeast corner)
Population, 2005: 506,562
Population percent change, 2000-2005: up 12.2%
Percent of population identifying as white, not Hispanic, 2004: 86.3%
Median household income, 2003: $66,651 compared to state median of $43,113
Persons below poverty line, 2003: 4.8%
Poorest County: Wyandotte (northeast corner)
Population, 2005: 155,750
Population percent change, 2000-2005: down 1.4%
Percent of population identifying as white, not Hispanic, 2004: 48.8%
Median household income, 2003: $32,930 compared to state median of $43,113
Persons below poverty line, 2003: 16.1%
(Poorest/Richest gauged by percent of persons below poverty line. And yes, the richest and poorest counties border each other. Ain't irony great?)
Seventeen of Kansas' 105 counties have 13% or more of their population below the poverty line. That's $18,850/year for a family of four. (http://aspe.hhs.gov/...) A vast majority have median household incomes of $35,000 or less. That's household- four people living on that, on average.
For your information, the least populous county is Greeley, with 1349 citizens as of 2005. The county is 783 square miles, meaning there are almost two people per square mile. That's seriously rural.
While many, many Kansas counties have poverty rates hovering between 11 and 15 percent, only Johnson County has a poverty rate in the single digits. But Johnson County is one of the most stringent conservative Republican strongholds in the state. In Kansas, the very poor and very rich both vote Republican.
Kansas has sort of an urban-rural political divide, with the rural parts of the state (roughly 2/3 of the geographic area, I would say) being strongly Republican, while the urban areas are divided somewhat. Lawrence (see map below) is more Democrat than Republican, but the rest of Kansas' cities lean Republican with a Democratic minority that does exist but doesn't wield a lot of influence. Most local and low-profile state offices are held by Republicans and only occasionally see Democratic challengers even running at all.
The Legislature and Governor
The Kansas House has 83 Republican members and 42 Democratic members, while the Senate has 30 Republicans and 10 Democrats. A 2/3 majority in both houses is required to override a gubernatorial veto, and Republicans have it in both. (Technically in the House they would need to pull in one Dem, but that's not exactly comforting.)
A word about the Governor- Kathleen Sebelius has been a remarkably good influence on Kansas, but when the Republicans in the Legislature have the votes to override her vetoes, it's hard for her to do a lot. Her mass conversions of formerly high-level Republicans to the Kansas Democratic Party is pretty impressive and will hopefully be productive, but it's too soon to tell, I think.
Results of Republican Leadership in Kansas for Women
But aside from the obvious, there are a lot of smaller factors that indicate the leanings of the state, and say something meaningful. Abortion is only available in Wichita and Kansas City, the two largest population centers in the state. (See map.) To drive the width of Kansas East-West nonstop on a direct route takes between 8 and 9 hours. As you can see, if one lives in far western Kansas, getting to Wichita for abortion services would take four to five hours each way. That's a day off work, a day requiring childcare, and a day of paying $3.00/gallon for gas. The lack of abortion providers is no accident, it's been a longtime conservative fundamentalist project to eliminate reproductive options in western Kansas.
Results of Republican Leadership in Kansas for Children
The care of children is also an issue that reflects progressive values or lack thereof, I think. The 2006 Kids Count survey has some interesting state data, which can be accessed in PDF form here: http://www.kac.org/.... Early Head Start is almost completely absent from the western half of Kansas. Free and reduced lunch-eligible students are far more common in western Kansas. The conservative line on most youth services is that the mother should stay home with children whenever childcare is necessary, so they don't support programs like Head Start. I am not making this up, this is the argument that's used. Afterschool programs get the same treatment in the legislature, to the point where they must be swathed in economic language about training the labor force to get any attention at all. Afterschool is good for the economy, but it could be so much more if the legislature was interested. The conservative argument is ridiculous and irrational, not to mention "reality-challenged" but they control the legislature so we just have to work with them.
I could talk about many other issues, including the state Department of Education, which is being run into the ground by Bob Corkins, a bureaucrat with no educational experience who was appointed over the objections of educators around the state. Conservative Republican animosity towards public education is no secret, and that's especially true in Kansas. There's all the usual stuff too, such as evolution being deemphasized in the public school curriculum (an issue which is still being fought).
Conclusion
So, to wrap up, I think it's clear that Kansas is a highly stratified state, with a huge urban-rural gap and rich-poor gap. However, pretty universally the Republican party controls the state political environment, and have not been shy about trying to get their agenda into policy form. This has been to the detriment of many sectors, especially the children of the working poor who make up such a vast part of the Kansas population.