Election officials will spend weekend counting ballots
County election offices in Kansas have until Monday to complete audits of three close races for governor, attorney general and secretary of state.
Officials in all 105 counties will spend the weekend overseeing a hand count of votes from 10% of their precincts. They'll make sure that count matches with the results reported on Election Night.
Bryan Caskey is the election director for the Kansas Secretary of State's office.
"We have post-election audits. We have the review of provisional ballots ... we have recounts, and then we certify the results," he said. "Election Day is not election day. It just takes time for everything to play out."
The audits will give candidates a better idea of whether they'll call for a recount of additional votes. Candidates must make recount requests by 5 p.m. Nov. 17.
Democrats poised to win 20 seats in Kansas House
Republicans incurred heavy losses in the Kansas House of Representatives in this week’s midterm elections. Democrats are poised to win 20 seats in the state’s lower chamber once the results are certified.
Most of the gains are in the Kansas City and Wichita suburbs. These victories included a win over Kansas House Majority Leader Chris Croft.
The Democratic House wins, paired with a potential gubernatorial victory for their party, would force Republicans to work with the minority party to get legislation across the finish line.
House Assistant Majority Leader Kyle Hoffman said he blames the legislative losses on national issues.
"I just believe it was more of a rebuke of what's happening in Washington than what it is a rebuke of what we've done in in Kansas," Hoffman said.
He said Republicans should be able to work with Democrats on tax relief and economic development, but he does not see much agreement on social issues.
Former WPD officer to lead Second Light shelter
A former Wichita police officer will now lead operations at the city's Second Light shelter.
Nate Schwiethale will join the homeless shelter and resource center as director of operations later this month. He served with the police department for 25 years.
Schwiethale created and led the department’s Homeless Outreach Team. The team works to connect people experiencing homelessness with permanent housing.
It has been recognized by the Department of Justice for its efforts to decriminalize homelessness.
Schwiethale will oversee day-to-day activities at the shelter and work with community partners to help people find housing.
Disruptive passenger on Wichita flight could face 20 years
A disruptive airline passenger who forced an emergency landing in Wichita has been charged with interfering with a flight crew.
A federal grand jury indicted the California woman after she allegedly yelled and cursed at flight attendants. The American Airlines flight traveling to Phoenix had to be diverted to Wichita earlier this summer.
The woman faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years and a $250,000 fine if convicted.
The FBI is currently investigating the case.
Mid-America All-Indian Museum names Hall of Honor inductees
The Mid-America All-Indian Museum will welcome the first class of its Hall of Honor Friday.
The hall recognizes Native people who are advancing culture and education. Honorees include Keeper of the Plains artist Francis Blackbear Bosin and John Harrington, the first Native American astronaut to travel into space.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Wichita museum. It will also host a celebration for Native American Heritage Month at Saturday's Thunder hockey game.
Later this month, the museum will hold an anniversary powwow that is open to the public.
Kansans waiting on official election results
Kansans are still waiting on the official results of several close elections, including for governor.
Close races for Kansas governor, secretary of state and attorney general have triggered a state law that requires every county audit the votes of 10% of their precincts.
Sedgwick County Election Commissioner Laura Rainwater spent over an hour with her staff, drawing names from a bucket of the county's 558 precincts to decide which 56 will get another review.
"After this concludes today, we will begin the tedious process of pulling all these ballots and sorting them so that the audit board can begin hand counting them," she said.
For some precincts, that means pulling as few as 25 ballots. For others, thousands of ballots will need to be collected.
The public audit begins at 9 a.m. Monday at the county election office.
Wichita schools will lobby for more special education funds
Wichita Public Schools will once again ask the state to pay its share of special education funding in the upcoming Kansas legislative session.
Kansas lawmakers have consistently underfunded special education since 2011, creating a shortfall worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
The state is supposed to cover 92% of excess special education costs for districts. But in recent years, it’s been around 65%.
Addi Lowell, chief financial officer for Wichita schools, said the shortfall means the district has to cut other parts of its budget.
“Special education is our number one priority. We have got to stop the bleeding," she said.
Democratic gains in Topeka could mean a new Legislature more friendly to public schools than in recent years.
###