Democratic Sen. Cindy Holscher narrowly won the Kansas gubernatorial race, NBC News projected Thursday, extending the party’s hold on the governorship in the red state.
Holscher defeated Republican Senate President Ty Masterson, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump, to succeed two-term Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.
While Trump won Kansas — a state where registered Republicans outnumber registered Democrats nearly 2-to-1 — by double digits in the last three presidential elections, polls showed a close race down the stretch, largely due to voters’ frustration with Trump and his handling of the economy. Democrats also benefited from increased attention to the traditionally conservative state as the Senate race tightened.
Holscher’s victory came despite a nearly 3-to-1 Republican advantage in ad spending in the general election, according to ad tracking firm AdImpact.
During the general election, Holscher aggressively linked Masterson to Trump, while saying she would find areas to work with the administration.
“I think it’s a concern that (Masterson) has the ear of the administration, because the administration also has a hold on him. You’re not going to see Ty Masterson opposing bad policy, like tariffs that hurt our farmers or importing beef that hurts our ranchers,” she told local news station KMBC in October. She added that it would also “work with people” in the administration “to make sure we bring good things to Kansas.”
Masterson, who has been endorsed by Trump, has attempted to distance himself from the president on his website and in campaign materials. But his connection to Trump, who was facing increasingly low approval ratings in the traditionally red state, was unmistakable: The president came to Kansas last weekend before Election Day to campaign alongside Masterson and the state’s Republican Senate candidate, Sen. Roger Marshall, who lost his re-election bid to Democrat Adam Hamilton.
Meanwhile, Holscher also made clear his opposition to the construction of new data centers throughout his campaign.
“This Kansas sunflower field is under threat because big tech wants to build a day out of center. As governor, I will put a pause on data centers until we can put strong guardrails in place to protect our communities and our budgets,” she said in a spot showing her standing in a field.
Masterson opposed a moratorium on data centers and championed a 2025 law he voted for, providing a sales tax exemption for data center investments. Holscher called for a statewide moratorium on the construction of new data centers. Building the Future, a pro-data center super PAC, entered the race last month to bolster Masterson.
Holscher’s victory follows a primary marked by Democratic infighting. Kelly, who has maintained strong job approval ratings in the state, had supported Holscher’s Democratic opponent in the primary, Sen. Ethan Corson, and issued stern warnings to voters to be “very concerned about the direction Kansas would go” if Holscher won.
Holscher ran a more progressive style campaign, while Corson ran as a moderate. Kelly endorsed Holscher after the primary.
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