Source: Tammy Vopat, County Clerk/Election Officer.
The local Lyon County Republican and Democratic organizations will be campaigning with the Nov. 6 midterm election in mind.
“Get out, vote, and don’t let anyone else decide your future,” said Jeremy Adkinson, chair of the Lyon County Democrats.
The Lyon County Republicans will be hosting a town hall at 5:15 p.m. Nov. 1 at their building, 1115 Commercial St., featuring Ron Highland and Kris Kobach as guest speakers. Highland is running for the Kansas House of Representatives and Kobach is running for governor.
“When I see the direction of the two parties, Kobach and the republican agenda focuses on the individual, a culture of life, a culture of personal responsibility, a culture of ‘We are responsible, and we do for ourselves, rather than rely on the government to provide for ourselves,’” said Vi Heskett, Lyon County Republican committee member.
The Lyon County Democrats will be hosting Alan LaPolice at 11 a.m. Oct. 27 at their headquarters, 1101 Commercial St. LaPolice is running for the the U.S. House of Representatives in the Kansas first congressional district.
Both parties stressed the importance that everyone vote, and that the midterms this year are especially important. “We always encourage everybody to advance vote, just in case something happens, or something comes up,” Adkinson said. “Take advantage of that, and make your life a little less stressful.”
Early voting began Saturday, Oct. 20 in the Lyon County Courthouse. Voters must have a form of ID to receive their ballots. In-person advance voting ends Nov. 5th at noon.
Absentee or mail-in ballots can be requested via ksvotes.org. The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot is Oct. 30. They must be postdated and received by the Lyon County clerk’s office up to three days after election day, according to the Kansas Secretary of State website.
The methods of both organizations differed when it came to campaigning.
Brandon Rains, treasurer of Lyon County Republicans, said that the organization is taking out radio ads and newspaper advertisements in “The Gazette” and other publications. Lyon County Republicans also have a Facebook page, which anyone can follow, and email outreach, according to Rains.
The Lyon County Democrats are focusing on personal connections, Adkinson said. “When you really get down to it, you can talk about all the different ways you can contact voters, (but) what really actually makes the most difference is person-to-person contact,” Adkinson said. “That will do more for you than any radio ad.”
Editors note: A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the representative position that Alan LaPolice is running for. LaPolice is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in the Kansas first congressional district.