Jim Barnett
Member of the Kansas Senate
from the 17th district
In office
January 8, 2001 – October 1, 2010
Preceded byHarry Stephens[1]
Succeeded byJeff Longbine
Personal details
Born (1954-07-30) July 30, 1954
Reading, Kansas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseRosie Hansen
Children2
EducationEmporia State University (BS)
University of Kansas (MD)

James A. Barnett (born July 30, 1954) is an American Republican politician from Kansas. Barnett ran for governor in 2018, ultimately coming in third place in the primary.[2]

Barnett formerly represented the 17th district of the Kansas Senate, which is centered on Emporia. On August 1, 2006 Barnett won the Kansas Republican Gubernatorial Primary. Barnett faced the incumbent Democratic Governor Kathleen Sebelius in the general election on November 7, 2006 and was unsuccessful in his bid as Sebelius was reelected for a 2nd term.

On June 2, 2009, Barnett announced that he was a candidate for the Republican nomination for the United States Congress from the first district of Kansas.[3] On August 3, 2010, Barnett lost the Republican nomination to fellow state senator Tim Huelskamp. Barnett subsequently resigned his state Senate seat, and resumed his medical career at a Topeka, Kansas, clinic.[4][5]

2006 gubernatorial campaign

In January 2006 Barnett first announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for Governor of Kansas. As 2006 progressed, other candidates for the Republican nomination emerged, however none of them were able to match Barnett in campaign spending or statewide name recognition. On August 1 Barnett secured the Republican nomination with 36% of the vote.[6] His closest competitor was author Ken Canfield, who received 26%, followed by former state House Speaker Robin Jennison, who polled 22%..

The candidates for the Republican nomination represented a wide variety of factions within the Republican party. Of the candidates, Barnett was neither a true moderate nor a true conservative, which may have helped with his win in the primary. Barnett's opponent in the general election was incumbent Democratic Governor Kathleen Sebelius. Sebelius was first elected governor in 2002. During her time in office Sebelius has remained popular, frequently with approval ratings over 50%. Sebelius defeated Barnett on November 7, 2006, with over 58% of total votes cast.

2018 gubernatorial campaign

On June 20, 2017, Barnett announced his second candidacy for governor in 2018.[7][8] In May 2018, Barnett announced that his wife Rosemary "Rosie" Hansen would be his running mate.[9] Barnett stated that he wanted his running mate to be able to help him institute his #OneKansas agenda, help his administration improve the functionality of the State government, and help bridge the urban/rural divide, and he believes his wife, Rosie Hansen, is the most qualified to do so.[10]

Policy Positions

Jim Barnett had been considered a moderate alternative to Kris Kobach in the Republican Party primary for the 2018 election.[11][12]

Abortion

Barnett opposes abortion.[11] In 2010 while a member of the Kansas Senate, Barnett voted to override former Kansas governor Mark Parkinson's veto of an abortion bill.[11]

Crosscheck Program

Barnett has criticized the use of the Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program in Kansas, calling it a "flawed program" and a waste of time and money.[13]

Economy and Taxes

Barnett told the Shawnee Mission Post he considers has stated that he believes former Kansas governor Sam Brownback's tax experiment "failed miserably from a budget standopoint."[12] He thinks increasing tourism to Kansas would improve the economy.[14]

Infrastructure

Barnett wants Kansas to go back to having a long-term plan for building and maintaining roads and highways.[14]

K-12 Education

Barnett told the Shawnee Mission Post that if elected governor, he wants to increase education funding to $600 million stair-stepped over 3 years ($200 million each year), and that he would sign legislation to adequately fund the schools according to the courts.[15]

Local Control

Barnett told the High Plains/Midwest AG Journal, "Ninety-five percent of economic development is local and we have to respect local communities" in reference to the proposed Tyson Foods chicken plant in Tonganoxie, Kansas that was unpopular with many local residents.[14]

Medicaid Expansion

Barnett supports expanding Medicaid in Kansas.[16][17] In June 2017, Barnett expressed concern that Congress would not allow states that have not already expanded Medicaid to do so and anticipated that repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would jeopardize healthcare for 440,000 Kansans.[17]

Water

Barnett has stated "water is significant to our state's economy" and that Kansas should work on moving water west and collaborating with other states to maintain the water.[14] He commended former Kansas governor Sam Brownback's 50-year plan to improve water quality and quantity in the state.[14]

References

  1. ↑ "Our Campaigns - KS State Senate 17 Race - Nov 07, 2000". www.ourcampaigns.com.
  2. ↑ Newton, Ryan (2019-06-19). "Jim Barnett announces run for Kansas governor". KSNW News. Retrieved 2018-06-15.
  3. ↑ Associated Press (June 2, 2009). "Barnett of Emporia files for election in Kansas' first congressional district". Lawrence Journal-World.
  4. ↑ Associated Press (September 8, 2010). "State Sen. Jim Barnett resigning". Topeka Capital-Journal.
  5. ↑ Carpenter, Tim (September 14, 2010). "Barnett lands at Cotton-O'Neil". Topeka Capital-Journal.
  6. ↑ "2017 Unofficial Kansas Election Results". www.kssos.org. Archived from the original on 2016-08-03. Retrieved 2006-08-07.
  7. ↑ Smith, Derek (June 20, 2017). "Barnett launches another run at Governor's office". Emporia Gazette. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  8. ↑ Ranker, Luke; Carpenter, Tim (June 20, 2017). "Topeka doctor Barnett rekindles political ambitions in GOP campaign for governor". The Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  9. ↑ Dulle, Brian (2018-05-31). "Jim Barnett picks wife as running mate for lieutenant governor". KSNT News. Retrieved 2018-06-15.
  10. ↑ Viviani, Nick (2018-05-31). "Barnett picks wife for running mate". WIBW. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  11. 1 2 3 Hancock, Peter (2017-06-20). "Jim Barnett making another bid for governor, as moderate alternative to Kobach". Lawrence Journal World. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  12. 1 2 Senter, Jay (2017-12-26). "For 2006 Republican gubernatorial nominee Jim Barnett, moderate wave of 2016 was a motivator to mount a second run". Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  13. ↑ Hall, Erica (2018-06-23). "Governor candidate Jim Barnett continues call for end of CrossCheck". WIBW. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Bergmeier, Dave (2018-06-21). "GOP candidate: State's economy heavily dependent on ag". High Plains/Midwest AG Journal. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  15. ↑ Senter, Jay (2018-02-14). "Kansas gubernatorial candidates on K-12 school funding: Republican Jim Barnett". Shawnee Mission Post. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  16. ↑ Ryan, Courtney (2018-06-20). ""KSN tracking Medicaid issue among candidates for governor"". KSN News. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  17. 1 2 Mclean, Jim (2017-06-20). "Topeka Doctor Barnett Launches Bid for Governor to 'Fix' Kansas". KCUR. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
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