Lawmaker could become Kansas’ first Black statewide official since the 1880s
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- KC Ohaebosim agreed to run as Cindy Holscher’s lieutenant governor candidate.
- If elected, Ohaebosim would be Kansas’ first Black statewide official since the 1880s.
- Candidates must finalize running mates by the June 1 filing deadline.
KC Ohaebosim was helping his mother navigate a laptop when he received the call from Cindy Holscher asking him to run alongside her to become lieutenant governor of Kansas.
Joining the ticket felt almost like a scene out of NFL draft night, he said.
“First pick, second pick, and all that. That’s kind of like what the moment felt like when she was calling me,” said Ohaebosim, a Democratic state representative from Wichita.
He and Holscher, a state senator from Overland Park, have been friends and allies since they were elected to the House in the same 2016 class. They shared an office for four years before Holscher made the jump to the Senate.
“I picked KC to be my running mate because he knows how to lead and fight for Kansans,” Holscher said in a statement. “He brings new ideas, a fresh voice, and a deep understanding of public policy.”
A data analyst, Ohaebosim, earned a bachelor’s degree in information technology from Wichita State University and an MBA from Newman University in Wichita. In the Legislature, he’s the ranking minority member on the House Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications Committee.
If he and Holscher prevail, Ohaebosim would become the first Black statewide elected official in Kansas since the 1880s, when Edward McCabe served two terms as state auditor.
“We’ve made a lot of progress in our country,” said Ohaebosim, 47, whose parents immigrated from Nigeria. “I know that there’s some rhetoric that’s going on right now coming out of Washington, which to me is kind of embarrassing. But the people of Kansas are good people.”
He said spending 10 years as a Democrat in a Legislature controlled by Republican supermajorities has honed his ability to listen to and communicate with people who see things differently than he does.
“We all have to listen to each other and come up with policies,” Ohaebosim said, adding that a “dogmatic mentality” undermines real solutions.
‘Compassionate service’
Gov. Laura Kelly, a two-term Democrat, has thrown the weight of her political operation behind Holscher’s highest-profile primary opponent, fellow Johnson County Sen. Ethan Corson of Fairway.
“Everybody has their pick and choose — endorsements, no endorsements,” Ohaebosim said. “At the end of the day, we’re going out to make our case to the people.”
He’s said he’s giving up his House seat to run on Holscher’s ticket because he believes she’s the right leader for the moment.
“I have seen what compassionate service looks like through my parents, and I see the same commitment to the people in Cindy’s leadership,” Ohaebosim said.
Two other prominent gubernatorial candidates have named their running mates so far.
Corson selected Renee Duxler, a social worker, one-time congressional candidate and president of the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce. Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt, who is running in the Republican primary, picked Joe Newland, a former lawmaker who stepped down as president of the Kansas Farm Bureau to run for lieutenant governor.
Candidates for governor have until the June 1 filing deadline to finalize their running mates ahead of the August primaries.
This story was originally published May 21, 2026 at 1:44 PM.
