As a state house member, Senator Barbara Bollier often found herself at odds with her party: a pro-choice, pro-Medicaid expansion, pro-LGBT rights Republican who voted to the left of even many in the Democratic caucus. A few weeks before she announced her run as a Republican for the state Senate seat, Rep. Bollier was the top potential recruit for Democrats to run in that same Senate seat. Meeting with her that week, then Representative Bollier stood by her thought that if we wanted real change, people inside the Republican Party would have to change it from the inside — to keep it from becoming completely out of control.
Today, Republican Senator Bollier changed to Democratic Senator Bollier. From the Shawnee Mission Post:
Mission Hills Sen. Barbara Bollier this morning officially changed her party affiliation from Republican to Democrat.
Citing “frustrations that have been ongoing for nine years,” Bollier said Wednesday that the inclusion of anti-transgender language in the party platform had proved a breaking point for her.
“Morally, the party is not going where my compass resides,” Bollier said. “I’m looking forward to being in a party that represents the ideals that I do, including Medicaid expansion and funding our K-12 schools.”
Kansas Democratic Caucus welcomes now Senator Bollier, who has been a strong advocate for the values of her district. The Senate Republican caucus has routinely punished her for her stances that represented her district and her beliefs.