Jobless rates went up for Emporia and Lyon County from April to May. The Kansas Department of Labor says Emporia's jobless rate went from 4.3 to 4.7 percent month-to-month. Lyon County's jobless rate went from 4.2 to 4.6 percent. Area counties had increases in their jobless rates as well, aside from Greenwood County --...

The 2026 Battle of the Badges Blood Drive got off to a strong start Thursday, largely due to two increases. The first was an increase in staff, which led to an increase in available appointment slots for the drive inside Emporia's Twelfth Avenue Baptist Church. The reason for the increases? The need for blood has reach...

Lyon County Engineer Wayne Scritchfield had an exciting update on the new Rocky Ford Bridge in an interview with KVOE News Thursday afternoon. The new bridge replaces the historic Rocky Ford Bridge, also known as Bird Bridge, due to its being the site of the Sandra Bird murder back in 1983. The original bridge will be ...

For weeks, KVOE News has told you the 3-day grace period for advance mail ballots in Kansas had been eliminated, with fears of ballots not reaching county courthouses in time to count in a given election cycle. That grace period has been reinstated, at least temporarily -- but in Lyon County, it's not leading to any pr...

Republicans hoping to carry on the work of outgoing 76th District Representative Brad Barrett appeared on KVOE's Candidate Forum on Thursday. The candidates -- Art Freund, Russel Stukey and Mark Weiser -- were asked about numerous topics relating to the district and the state. Property tax relief has been a major conce...

The Emporia State football team has been selected for three games in the MIAA's 2026 MIAA Football Game of the Week Package. It's the third year of the deal between the conference and 38 the Spot in Kansas City, owned by Scripps News. The package will include 13 MIAA games to TV audiences in the greater Kansas City a...

The Mighty Spartans youth football program has officially extended its registration deadline to July 24th, giving local parents additional time to sign up their athletes for the upcoming season. ​Roster spots are still open for athletes entering the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. To ensure development and health, the prog...

Emporia State women's basketball has added a final piece for the upcoming 2026-27 season. Head coach MJ Baker has added freshman Camilla Sartori from Milan, Italy. She led her team to a runner-up finish at the Italian U19 Nationals in 2025 and helped her team to the Series B playoffs last season. She joins seven pla...

Emporia State athletics has announced home football start times for the 2026 season, including several historic firsts. The home opener is set for 1:00 p.m. on September 12 in Week 3 against Michigan Tech, the latest opening day for the Hornets at Welch Stadium since 2010. Nebraska-Kearney is in town the next week fo...

Six local youth athletes secured top-four finishes at the Sunflower State Games swimming competition Saturday in Topeka at Hummer Sports Park. The team successfully translated their summer technique training into podium results across multiple age groups, setting a strong foundation for the upcoming winter season. ​B...