The vote in Kansas must be finalized by August 31, and it might take that long to get it.
Gov. Jeff Colyer and Secretary of State Kris Kobach turned over squabbling duties to their proxies Monday as counties began tallying provisional ballots with the GOP candidates for governor separated by 110 votes.
NEW, DEVELOPING via @sherman_newshttps://t.co/FriPGr45vM #ksleg
— CJOnline (@CJOnline) August 13, 2018
Kobach assistant Eric Rucker and Colyer’s chief counsel, Brant Laue, offered competing views of Kansas law governing provisional ballots completed by unaffiliated voters. The issue is whether votes should count if a volunteer poll worker made a mistake.
Johnson County has added more than a thousand ballots to its primary vote totals, but results won’t be released until tomorrow: https://t.co/0qThaEX8Oy pic.twitter.com/8dbT2LURM1
— Lawrence Journal-World (@LJWorld) August 13, 2018
Colyer’s campaign has expressed concerns since last week about unaffiliated voters who were incorrectly instructed to vote provisionally instead of declaring a party and casting a normal ballot.
Poll workers to blame?
“We had one (polling) location where that happened…These are citizens. We train them. We train them hard. There were a number of problems at that location.”
The unaffiliated voters were part of a larger group of 264 voters in Johnson County who were incorrectly told by poll workers to cast provisional ballots. All of those votes will count, Metsker said.
Board of Canvassers votes to be in recess until 4pm on Tuesday, Aug 14 at the same location. at that time, the votes will be certified. #JoCoCanvass
— Johnson County Election Office (@jocoelection) August 13, 2018
In general election news, national Democrats have their eyes, and money, on Kansans in Congress.
Kansas Democratic congressional candidate Sharice Davids is getting help.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee on Friday named Davids to its “red-to-blue” list of top-tier candidates, which makes her eligible for organizational and fundraising help, staff resources and candidate training.
The committee on Thursday began airing a television ad in the Kansas City market supporting Davids.
What do Missouri’s Senate candidates think of medical pot and other hot-button ballot items? https://t.co/nSoSeb3Dt0 pic.twitter.com/O7mHuo0rRn
— St. Louis Post-Dispatch (@stltoday) August 13, 2018
McCaskill:
“I do think medical marijuana should be passed.”
“I think it is time that we make additional investments in our infrastructure,” she said. “And I join our Republican governor and our Republican lieutenant governor in supporting the gas tax.
“I certainly think an increase in minimum wage is appropriate,” McCaskill said, “and I couldn’t be more enthusiastic about CLEAN Missouri.”
Hawley was noncomittal.
“I’m glad they’re on the ballot,” Hawley said when asked about medical marijuana, the gasoline tax and the minimum wage increase. “I think the people should have their say on all of them. I think it’s up to the voters.
“I’m still studying the language on each one of those,” he said, when pressed on his positions. The campaign did not respond to a follow-up question about Hawley’s position on CLEAN Missouri.
Speaking of change in leadership:
In @KCMO, @MayorSlyJames has less than year left in office. Here’s what he wants to add to his legacy because “just because you’re in your last year doesn’t mean your job is over.” But how far can he go? Story by @bturque. #kc https://t.co/M2rlp5WLS6
— Kathy Lu (@kathyluwho) August 13, 2018
“Just because you’re in your last year doesn’t mean your job is over,” he said on a recent morning behind his desk on the 29th floor of City Hall.
“If that’s the case, go ahead and pay me my salary for the next 12 months ($129,000) and I’ll go sit on the beach or something.”
The ground is thirsty. Help incoming?
Much-needed rain is on the way. The first round late this evening won’t offer much, but the second round on Tuesday will. Watch for localized flash flooding Tuesday into Wednesday. pic.twitter.com/JuD67DuAsB
— NWS Kansas City (@NWSKansasCity) August 13, 2018
Back to school safety time!
August is Back to School Safety Month. Use caution near school zones and be aware of children crossing streets. pic.twitter.com/F6R5AhAeH1
— KansasDOT (@DriveSafeKansas) August 13, 2018
A centuries-old tree is no more.
Crews with Shawnee County Parks and Recreation are working Monday to remove a massive tree, estimated to be about 200 years old, that split and collapsed over the weekend.
Via @katie_reports https://t.co/2U0uxZZxJM— CJOnline (@CJOnline) August 13, 2018
The Kansas City Royals are 35-82, and might be headed for a historic loss number this season. Here’s a bright spot:
Yesterday, the #Royals set club records with 111-straight errorless innings and 12 consecutive games without an error. 👌 #RaisedRoyal pic.twitter.com/GI7oG5JrTw
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) August 13, 2018
The Brief is a daily roundup from St. Joe Post and around the web. The Associated Press contributed to this report.