Ending months of speculation, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt is running for governor.
Schmidt made the announcement on social media Tuesday morning. Schmidt was elected as attorney general in 2010 and has been re-elected twice since then. He says he’s entering the race to protect “our way of life.”
Schmidt’s move was expected after increasing criticism of Governor Laura Kelly’s handling of the coronavirus response.
Another expected move is a campaign from one-time governor and lieutenant governor Jeff Colyer, who narrowly lost a primary election battle with former secretary of state Kris Kobach in 2018. Colyer has already started assembling his campaign staff — and he says he’s the true conservative in the race — but has not officially announced a campaign.
Kelly, meanwhile, announced her re-election bid several weeks ago.
