Why FBI invite to KS, MO officials stoked fear about federal election takeover
Hello, Star readers.
Today, we’re exploring why top election officials in Kansas and Missouri have been invited to participate in an FBI-led meeting about preparations for the 2026 midterms.
Next, we’ll get into:
• Cutting ties: Port KC granted tax breaks and issued $80 million in bonds to support Platform Ventures’ warehouse project. But outrage over a potential ICE deal soured the relationship.
• ‘Sanctuary state for predators’: Survivors of sexual abuse are renewing their calls for Missouri lawmakers to eliminate the statute of limitations on child sexual abuse claims.
This week in politics
As President Donald Trump’s calls to “nationalize” elections fan fears about voting rights nationwide, Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins and his Kansas counterpart Scott Schwab were invited by the FBI to participate in a briefing about preparations for November.
The Star reviewed the invite for the Feb. 25 meeting of top election officials, which will also include representatives from the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, the Postal Inspection Service and the Election Assistance Commission.
It’s not uncommon for state and federal officials to share information ahead of high-stakes elections and some experts have framed the invitation as routine. However, the meeting comes as state and local election officials have grown increasingly suspicious of the Trump administration’s motives ahead of the midterms.
“Given the way that the Trump administration has openly sought to politicize the role of election administration and even lied about fraud and the outcomes of elections — and is actively using the FBI to try and, I’d say, accelerate that lie, yeah, it’s pretty concerning,” said Jason Kander, a Democrat who served as Missouri’s secretary of state from 2013 to 2017.
Fred Sherman, who served as Johnson County election commissioner from 2021 through 2025, said federal agencies can provide support without interfering in elections.
“They’re not there to dictate or guide in terms of how elections are administered,” Sherman said.
Read what else officials of both parties had to say about the FBI invite — including who’s going.
More from this past week
• Fears over federal intervention in local elections comes as Kansas prepares to pick its next election chief. Here’s how secretary of state candidates responded to Trump’s comments.
• KC Police Chief Stacey Graves faced tough questions about the root causes of KCPD’s budget crisis. “It doesn’t feel like there’s going to be any true accountability,” one official said.
• Lacking the support of a key Democratic lawmaker, Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe withdrew his controversial nomination for the powerful board that controls Kansas City’s police department.
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That’s all for now! See you next week.
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