Comanche County voters went to the polls Tuesday to select party nominees for federal, state and local offices during the Kansas primary election.
According to unofficial results provided by Comanche County Clerk Bri Uhl, 401 ballots were cast countywide. Of those, 222 were cast in Coldwater, 132 in Protection and 42 were advance or early ballots and five were provisional ballots pending review during the election canvass.
Kyle D. Hoffman held off challenger Herb Landwehr in the Republican primary race for the Kansas State House of Representatives District 116 seat.
Hoffman, the incumbent, won Tuesday’s primary election. In Comanche County, he received 163 votes while Barber County’s Herb Landwehr received 166. But throughout the district, Hoffman received 2,534 votes while Landwehr received 1,772 to win the nomination.
“I appreciate the continued wide support throughout the district and enjoyed the opportunity to speak with so many people in the last couple of months about the issues,” the current state representative said. “I commend Mr. Landwehr and his supporters for a spirited campaign and now look forward to the general election and making further progress for our communities in Topeka.”
Hoffman, a Comanche County resident, will move on to the November general election with no opposition as no Democratic candidate filed for the seat.
In local races, two Comanche County positions were up for election, with just one Republican candidate filling in each race. Zackery Ellis was the only candidate for District One county commissioner and Abriana “Bri” Uhl was the only candidate for county clerk. Ellis received 73 votes and Uhl received 251 votes.
Among the Republican races, U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall easily won Comanche County with 269 votes, defeating challenger Pond Naramore, who received 47 votes.
In the Republican primary for Kansas’ 4th Congressional District, incumbent U.S. Rep. Ron Estes received 268 votes to defeat challenger Frank McCollum, who received 53 votes.
Republican voters also selected their preferred nominee for governor. Ty Masterson and running mate Jeffrey Klemp led the field in Comanche County with 111 votes. Philip Sarnecki and Joy Eakins finished second with 95 votes, followed by Scott Schwab and Ken Rahjes with 55 votes.
On the Democratic ballot, Cindy Holscher and running mate KC Ohaebosim received 24 votes in the gubernatorial primary.
Several local precinct committee races were also decided during the primary election.
In the Avilla, precinct committeewoman race, Sandy Hoffman received 11 votes to defeat Trent Haas, who received one vote. In the Avilla, precinct committeeman race, Kyle Hoffman received 13 votes to defeat Harlee Haas, who received one vote.
Several write-in candidates also received votes in local precinct committee and township races, with many receiving one vote each.
County voters also weighed in on a proposed State Constitutional amendment. According to the unofficial results, the amendment passed in Comanche County with 196 yes votes to 178 no votes, while the measure was overwhelmingly defeated statewide.
The unofficial results will remain subject to review until the Comanche County Board of Canvassers certifies the election. Provisional ballots will be reviewed during the canvass before official results are finalized.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Katee Underwood, Bob Morris and Jason Jump all contributed to this article.
