Both candidates for governor gained support of party hardliners in their primary elections, but now Republican Ty Masterson and Democrat Cindy Holscher hope to gain unaffiliated and moderate voters in the general election by attacking their opponent as “extreme” and by supporting popular policies.
It’s been a dozen years since Kansans elected a Republican to the state’s highest executive office.
Masterson is hoping to become the first governor since Sam Brownback was reelected in 2014.
Masterson defeated a crowded group of primary challengers running with a MAGA message and an endorsement from President Donald Trump, but he’s since toned down his pro-Trump messaging to help his electability in the general election.
Cindy Holscher has run with a populist message attacking billionaires, corporations and data centers, which helped her win a competitive primary against Ethan Corson.
During the primary, Corson, a fellow state senator, had the endorsements of Kelly and former Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. Now, Holscher is pivoting her campaign to the middle and touting her Republican support.
A necessity for Holscher will be winning over unaffiliated voters, who outnumber Democrats registered in Kansas by more than 50,000 people.
Ty Masterson, Republican candidate
Political experience: Masterson has been a Kansas lawmaker for more than two decades.
He previously served as a state representative from 2005-09 and has been a state senator since then. The Andover Republican became senate president in 2021.
The GOP firebrand has sparred with members of his own party on the issue of property taxes.
What else? Masterson dropped out of college from Kansas State University, and in a campaign ad, Masterson said he did this to “put food on the table” and that “tough times mean tough choices.”
Before getting into politics he worked as a contractor and small business owner of Masterbuilt homes. He’s been under attack from Holscher for filing for personal bankruptcy in 2010 due to the failed business.
Platform: Decreasing taxes has been a major goal of Masterson.
He negotiated a plan in 2024 with Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins and Kelly to cut property and income taxes over a five-year period. He supported the cut because he said they would provide tax relief for Kansans.
Opponents of the final plan said the original proposal included more residential property tax reductions.
Masterson has consistently said additional property tax relief is his number one issue on the campaign trail. Masterson said his plan would reign in local spending with a property tax assessed valuation cap of 3% or less growth year over year.
This plan would need a constitutional amendment to pass and house republicans have already had qualms with the cap plan. Lawmakers eventually repealed a previous law that used a “lid” on property tax rates because of concerns about local control.
During his time in the state Legislature, Masterson has targeted cultural issues, voting to ban transgender girls from competing in girls’ sports and blocking state universities from running programs to foster diversity and inclusion.
Cindy Holscher, Democratic candidate
Political experience: Cindy Holscher, an Overland Park Democrat, has served in the state Senate since 2021.
Prior to that, she was a state representative for four years.
What else? Holscher grew up in Slater, Missouri, and was a first generation college graduate receiving degrees in journalism and political science from the University of Missouri in 1992.
She worked a majority of her career before holding office at Sprint. Holscher also worked as a substitute teacher and even joined a teacher’s union earlier this year. A move that a Corson campaign staffer called a “stunt, plain and simple.”
Platform: Holscher has run a campaign hoping to gain broad interest by supporting popular policies like recreational marijuana legalization, a moratorium on data centers and fully funding special education.
Holscher has also been on the opposing side of the property tax debate with Masterson. While he’s been in favor of a cap, Holscher has talked about how the reasoning behind property tax increases, in her eyes, is local school districts having to cover more of the costs of special education.
She’s pushing to reduce that burden by fully funding special education as specified in Kansas law, something state lawmakers have not been doing and is prompting schools to consider legal action.
She has also come out in favor of a long supported Democratic plan to lower property tax assessment rates without a hard cap by decreasing the residential assessment rate by 2.5%.
This — like Masterson’s plan — would take a constitutional amendment.
The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW , KRPS and High Plains Public Radio.
Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.
