Republican drops Senate bid

Kansas Republican drops Senate bid to primary Rep. Steve Watkins

State Treasurer Jake LaTurner will challenge the incumbent in next year's primary.

By JAMES ARKIN

Kansas Republican Jake LaTurner is cutting short his campaign for Senate to run a primary challenge against freshman Rep. Steve Watkins instead.

LaTurner, the state treasurer, announced the decision in a statement Wednesday that made no mention of Watkins, though he said the district's residents "deserve a solid conservative fighter they can count on."

"At the end of the day, we don't want to see another congressional seat be turned over to the Democrats in Kansas," LaTurner told POLITICO in an interview. "Congressman Watkins, without question, puts this seat in jeopardy this cycle."

Watkins has faced resignation rumors and a sustained, behind-the-scenes whisper campaign about his status as a candidate in recent weeks. Watkins' chief of staff called the rumors "absurd" last month and the congressman said in a tweet that he was not resigning.

LaTurner declined multiple times to discuss the current rumors about Watkins, calling it a "sideshow" and saying he was not "going to get into rumor or innuendo." But he cited Watkins' poor fundraising and a "lack of coalition building" as reasons the incumbent was vulnerable next year; Watkins won his 2018 race by less than a percentage point.

LaTurner, 31, said he had not had conversations with anyone at the National Republican Congressional Committee or any House GOP leaders but said he expected to at some point in the future.

"I'm running this race based on facts, and I think the fact is that this seat is in danger of going to [Democratic] hands," he said. "I'm not going to get into any of the rumors that have been swirling around. I don't think that's appropriate."

Bryan Piligra, a spokesperson for Watkins, said the contrast between the two would be "a life of service versus a life of self-service."

"Jake LaTurner's entire career has been political ladder-climbing — and that climb ends in August," Piligra said.

LaTurner's move is also likely to upend the Senate race. He had been one of several Republicans running in a primary to replace retiring Sen. Pat Roberts. Former Gov. Jeff Colyer called for LaTurner to switch races last week, saying it would both clear out the crowded Senate primary and give Republicans a better chance to hold the state's 2nd Congressional District, which Watkins won narrowly last year.

Kris Kobach, a Republican who lost the state's gubernatorial race last year, is the biggest name currently in the Senate race. But party leaders in Washington are opposed to his candidacy, believing he could put the red state in jeopardy next fall. State Senate President Susan Wagle is also running, and McClatchy reported Wednesday that Rep. Roger Marshall, who is widely expected to run for Senate, will announce his 2020 plans at the state fair this weekend.

Senate Republicans still prefer Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as the party's nominee and continue to believe he is a potential candidate even though he has said he is ruling it out. The filing deadline is June of next year.

"He's my first choice," Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told radio host Hugh Hewitt Tuesday when asked about Pompeo. "I know the president probably likes him where he is, and he's done an outstanding job as secretary of state. But should he decide to go in a different direction, he would obviously be our number one choice."

LaTurner had $470,000 in cash on hand as of June 30, and will transfer those funds to his House campaign. Watkins had $260,000 in his account at the end of last quarter.