Recent reports of GOP “Moderates” taking control of party leadership positions in Johnson County give the impression that there has been a larger, more coordinated effort to take control of the party at large. With the exception of Johnson County and the third congressional district, that hasn’t held to be true.
In fact, if it weren’t for some confusion among conservative JoCo delegates, liberals would have lost. While the Kansas Meadowlark does point out that some tactical errors by liberals could have contributed to their losses for delegates, these alone can’t explain the complete loss by liberals when it comes to delegates.
A switch of just 20 votes for chairman and 12 votes for Vice-Chair would have meant a conservative win.
What hasn’t been talked about much is the complete meltdown of liberals in other parts of the state. No competitive races were seen in Sedgwick County. Conservatives still have control of the second and fourth districts. The same is expected in the first. And now conservatives will keep delegate control in the third as well.
What is important to note is the lack of a ‘unity slate’ from the liberals. When the numbers are against them, they want to power share, but when they think they can win, compromise and sharing don’t seem to be in their vocabulary. The new JoCo leadership needs to keep the past in mind when making decisions over the next two years. Working together needs to be a phrase they repeat often.
Working together is something to be desired, but it has to be desired no matter what the numbers look like, no matter what the year is. That hasn’t been seen in the past.
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