KS Democrat brings social work, nonprofit experience to lieutenant governor race
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- Renee Duxler is running as Ethan Corson’s pick for lieutenant governor.
- Duxler built her career as a social worker and nonprofit executive in Kansas.
- Corson and Duxler’s ticket is one of three in the August Democratic primary.
As a social worker assisting survivors of domestic violence and patients facing HIV and AIDS diagnoses, Renee Duxler saw first-hand how people’s lives can be shaped for better or worse by policy decisions and budget allocations.
Those lessons stuck with her when she assumed a new role leading the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce as a Democrat in ruby-red central Kansas.
Now Duxler, 46, is running to become the state’s lieutenant governor. She joined forces with Fairway state Sen. Ethan Corson, Gov. Laura Kelly’s pick to succeed her as chief executive.
Corson described Duxler as “the kind of leader who has seen both the consequences of failure and the power of effective leadership.”
“Her experiences give her a perspective rooted in compassion and accountability,” Corson said in his announcement. “That makes her an exceptional choice for lieutenant governor.”
Duxler grew up in Hays and McPherson. She said her appreciation for the importance of leveraging public resources for good started with the free meals she received in school.
One of the jobs she took on to help put herself through Kansas State University — providing respite care for the families of children with cerebral palsy — prompted her to change her major to social work.
“I don’t think I was unlike any other Kansas kid that when I graduated, I really did think I was just going to get the heck out of here,” Duxler said. “But I became deeply rooted in the work that I was doing and made those connections, and then of course started a family, and really have come to love this state. It’s been good to me.”
Renee Duxler’s professional background
She went on to earn her master’s degree in social work from Newman University in Wichita, where she worked under Dr. Donna Sweet, a renowned physician known for her pioneering treatment of HIV/AIDS patients.
Traveling the state and helping people navigate the fear and stigma associated with their diagnoses was a formative experience, Duxler said.
“Dr. Sweet especially taught me about being tough and compassionate at the same time,” Duxler said. “We wanted to definitely help people, but there was a time when I needed to stand up for them and be an advocate for them, and that’s carried me through my entire adult life — just learning how people are trying to survive.”
Duxler went on to serve as executive director of several Wichita-based nonprofits, including Positive Directions, which provides HIV/STI testing and education, and the Alzheimer’s Association, before pivoting to economic development.
She said the path to economic prosperity in Salina and communities like it across Kansas will be paved through investment in healthcare and public schools, as well as partnerships between the Department of Commerce and local governments.
“Give opportunities for these small communities to invest in themselves and further grow jobs, grow opportunities for their residents,” Duxler said.
She met Corson last fall when his campaigning took him to Salina and he asked to sit down with her to discuss issues affecting the north central region of the state.
“We had had several conversations — just him checking back in, asking questions,” Duxler said. “And then this last time he texted, he threw the curveball at me of asking me to be his lieutenant governor.”
Corson and Duxler’s ticket will be one of three on the ballot in August’s Democratic gubernatorial primary. Overland Park Sen. Cindy Holscher chose Wichita Rep. KC Ohaebosim to be her running mate, and Overland Park Mayor Curt Skoog is campaigning alongside Fredonia physician Jennifer McKenney.
