Government & Politics
Former GOP Sen. Nancy Kassebaum endorses Democrat Bollier in Kansas Senate race
Former Kansas Republican Sen. Nancy Kassebaum endorsed Democrat Barbara Bollier Thursday for the Senate seat that she held for 18 years.
Kassebaum was the first woman elected to a full term in the U.S. Senate whose husband had not previously served in Congress.
Known for her moderate outlook, Kassebaum served from late 1978 to 1997 when she was succeeded by fellow Republican Pat Roberts, who Bollier is running to replace.
Kassebaum pointed to Bollier’s approach to the COVID-19 pandemic, support for public education and her opposition to President Donald Trump’s tariffs as reasons she was backing the Democrat.
“I’ve known Barbara for many years, and she has the character, know-how, and compassion to represent all communities in our state,” Kassebaum said in a statement.
“I was proud to represent Kansans for 18 years in the Senate. Barbara shares my belief in working with members of both parties to solve problems and get things done. Barbara has a clear record of accomplishment for the people of Kansas, and she will work effectively at the national level on their behalf,” Kassebaum said.
“Achieving bipartisanship and cooperation in the U.S. Senate is still possible, and electing Dr. Bollier would be a positive step towards making that happen.”
Kassebaum’s endorsement puts her at odds with her longtime Senate colleague Bob Dole, the former Senate majority leader who was an early supporter of Rep. Roger Marshall, the Republican nominee for the seat.
Dole appeared in Marshall ads during the GOP primary.
Kassebaum and Dole have previously split on Trump, with whom Marshall has closely aligned during his two terms in Congress.
During an appearance with Dole at the University of Kansas’ Dole Institute of Politics two months ahead of the 2016 election, Kassebaum criticized the nomination of Trump.
“I’m terribly disappointed in my own Republican Party with the leadership Donald Trump has given. I do not like the language he’s given it. I’m sorry Bob,” Kassebaum told Dole, who was the party’s only former nominee to attend the 2016 Republican National Convention.
This is the second time in two election cycles that Kassebaum has endorsed a Democrat in a statewide race, announcing her support for Laura Kelly in the 2018 race for governor roughly two years ago this week.
Bollier, a state senator and former Republican who switched parties in 2018, is hoping to build a coalition of Democrats, moderate Republicans and independents similar to the one that powered Kelly to victory in 2018.
Bollier called it an honor to have Kassebaum’s support.
“She has always been a role model for me, personally. She has advocated and advanced the interests of Kansans by working cooperatively to find solutions. Following her example, I will represent Kansas in the U.S. Senate as an independent voice of reason,” Bollier said.
Kansas has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1932, the same year that Kassebaum’s father, Kansas Republican icon Alf Landon, was elected governor.
Landon unsuccessfully challenged Franklin Roosevelt for president in 1936, but remained a presence in Kansas GOP politics for decades after his governorship.
Kassebaum, 88, returned to Kansas after her husband, Howard Baker, chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan, passed away in 2014. She lives on a ranch in Morris County.
She remains a highly respected figure among moderate Kansas Republicans.
Eric Pahls, Marshall’s campaign manager, downplayed the significance of Kassebaum’s endorsement.
“This endorsement comes as no surprise, as Sen. Kassebaum has endorsed only Democrats in recent elections,” Pahls said in a statement, noting Marshall’s endorsements from Dole and Roberts.
However, Pahls sought to set up a meeting between Marshall and Kassebaum last year, according text messages provided to The Star by Nellie Landon Kassebaum, the senator’s granddaughter who attended KU with Pahls.
“I’m working w/ Dr. Marshall again. He is considering running for the Senate, and desperately wants to take the trip to Burdick to get advice and counsel from Sen. Kassebaum. I know (and he knows) that he may not be her first pick. And he is not looking to publicize the meeting or position it as some endorsement. He just wants to learn something from her,” Pahls said in a text message in June of 2019, according to the screen shot provided to The Star.
The requested meeting never happened.
Asked about his outreach, Pahls said Marshall “specifically has never asked for her endorsement or sought her endorsement. He reached out to basically every living Kansas senator or a majority of the public figures that he had some common ground with.”
Despite referencing Marshall’s potential Senate run in the message, Pahls said the requested meeting wouldn’t have been about the election.
“He just likes to hear from them about what they learned serving Kansans. She was a senator so he was looking to hear about her experience,” Pahls said.
Roberts told The Star last week that he sought Kassebaum’s advice in 2014 on how to win Johnson County when he was facing a tougher-than-usual re-election fight because of her popularity with this voting bloc.
He joked that she told him to “buy it.” Roberts went on to win by double digits that year after heavy TV spending.
Kassebaum was a mentor to Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, a Republican who worked for her as an aide early in his career.
“I think about that a lot. I think about Nancy’s example. She was terrific, in my view at least, in always being focused on why she was here,” Schmidt told The Star last year during a visit to Washington. “She never was very interested in the game. I’m not sure where that fits now in the roster.”
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