June 5, 2026
THE SUNFLOWER STATE CIRCUS
Your biweekly briefing on the chaotic, extreme, and out-of-touch Republican primary for Kansas Governor
Welcome back to The Sunflower State Circus, your biweekly look at the increasingly chaotic Republican primary for Kansas governor, a race where the candidates have spent the last two weeks blasting each other, dodging questions about shady campaign money, and doing absolutely nothing to address the issues that actually matter to Kansas families.
Here are the lowlights: Ty Masterson finally got the Trump endorsement he spent months humiliating himself to win, Jeff Colyer dropped out after Trump decided he was a loser, Vicki Schmidt found herself at the center of a serious pay-to-play scandal involving $300,000 in campaign contributions, and Philip Sarnecki and Masterson traded jabs over tonight’s GOP debate.
Let's get into it.
BEND-THE-KNEE WATCH: MASTERSON'S HUMILIATION PAYS OFF
Ty Masterson and the entire clown car of GOP candidates running for governor have spent the primary locked in a humiliating contest to see who can bow lowest to Donald Trump.
Over Memorial Day weekend, Masterson got exactly what he was begging for when Trump announced his "complete and total endorsement."
Now Masterson proudly owns every piece of baggage that comes with it, and Kansas voters are watching. Here's what he's signed up to defend:
Gas prices up 52% since the Iran War began, with the average in Kansas now near $4 and nearly $5 for diesel
A reckless tariff agenda that has resulted in hundreds of farm closures across Kansas
More than 10,000 Kansas children losing food assistance
Inflation up to 3.8%
We look forward to watching Masterson explain all of the above to working Kansas families.
CLOWN CAR COLLISION: SARNECKI STARTS SWINGING AT MASTERSON
If anyone thought the Republican field would quietly fall in line behind Trump's pick, Philip Sarnecki had something to say about that — and he has been saying it loudly.
Sarnecki came out swinging, hitting Masterson on his toxic record of serving special interests instead of Kansas families. He:
Called Masterson's record "an absolute disaster"
Accused him of being "bought and paid for by lobbyists and special interests"
Sarnecki also accused Masterson of dodging the debate because "he can't defend his terrible record" — alleging that at the last debate, Masterson "straight up LIED about his record on green energy." Masterson fired back on social media, telling Sarnecki "you've always struggled with the truth" and promising to see him at the next debate.
Sarnecki wasn't alone. Fellow Republican Charlotte O'Hara declared that "Masterson's cronyism and kneeling at the throne of the Kansas Chamber corporate welfare Czars is beyond blatant."
To make matters even more interesting, radio host Pete Mundo reported that before the June 1 filing deadline, a Masterson surrogate called Sarnecki to offer him the lieutenant governor slot — a deal Sarnecki quickly and publicly rejected.
This race is nowhere near over, and when it's done, Masterson will emerge damaged, drained of resources, and deeply out of step with Kansas families.
SHADY MONEY WATCH: VICKI SCHMIDT'S $300,000
Let's check in on Vicki Schmidt.
New reporting from Bloomberg and The Kansas City Star revealed that Schmidt accepted more than $300,000 in campaign contributions from billionaire Todd Boehly and his allies, in the weeks before her department moved to support delaying new capital rules that Boehly's company, Security Benefit, had been pushing to postpone. The timeline is damning:
Schmidt accepted more than $300,000 from Boehly and allied donors
Some donations reportedly came from entities tied to Security Benefit or its parent company
Weeks later, Schmidt's department backed delaying the exact capital rules Boehly's company wanted postponed
Her campaign declined to answer questions about her relationship with Boehly or whether they discussed regulatory matters
REMINDER: The report comes just weeks after The Star revealed that Ty Masterson accepted the maximum corporate contribution from a company tied to the dangerous 7-OH industry, while Philip Sarnecki received thousands of dollars in in-kind support from a major kratom wholesaler and his wife.
BONUS: JEFF COLYER IS A LOSER (AGAIN)
One final note: Jeff Colyer spent months convinced he was the rightful heir to the Republican nomination and then failed to even make it to filing day. Colyer went dark for a week and quietly dropped out, a fitting end for the man who served as Sam Brownback's loyal sidekick while the Kansas experiment blew up the state's economy, gutted public schools, and became a national cautionary tale.
That’s a wrap for this edition of The Sunflower State Circus. Thanks for reading, we’ll see you next time.
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