Kansas State Republican Defects, Leaves GOP for Democratic Party
A disgruntled Republican state senator in Kansas is walking away from the GOP to join the Democrats after being kicked from her committee leadership positions.
State Sen. Barbara Bollier lost her post in the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee after supporting Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections, according to The Shawnee Mission Post.
Bollier supported Democrats Tom Niermann in his run for the House and Laura Kelly in her run for governor.
“Once I was removed from my committees, it no longer made sense for me to try to represent my constituents as a Republican,” Bollier said.
It didn’t make sense for her to be a Republican to begin with, considering Bollier supported a candidate like Kelly.
When her term as governor begins next month, Kelly plans to expand government health care and advance the left’s LGBT agenda, which are both plans that Bollier apparently supports.
“Morally, the party is not going where my compass resides,” Bollier said. “I’m looking forward to being in a party that represents the ideals that I do, including Medicaid expansion and funding our K-12 schools.”
Bollier also expressed frustration with “anti-transgender language.”
Conservative values haven’t changed. It’s more likely that Bollier is lacking an ideological compass.
“Senator Bollier has a voting record more liberal than some Democrats, so it’s no shock she joined the party of Nancy Pelosi,” Kansas Sen. President Susan Wagle said on Twitter. “The only surprise is that she didn’t end her facade of being a Republican sooner.”
Senator Bollier has a voting record more liberal than some Democrats, so it’s no shock she joined the party of Nancy Pelosi. The only surprise is that she didn’t end her facade of being a Republican sooner.#ksleg https://t.co/rkD6vckGUq
— Susan Wagle (@SenatorWagle) December 12, 2018
Bollier’s party change seems like a case of political opportunism.
My theory is that she unfaithfully served in the state Senate as a Republican because it was difficult to become elected as a Democrat.
After losing her leadership posts and the support of her peers, there was nothing left for Bollier to gain from pretending to be a Republican.
There is no other possible explanation to switch sides now, considering how far Democrats have drifted from the center. There is practically no common ground between the two parties.
Johnson County Republican Party Chair Dave Myres intends to offer a real Republican to voters in the 2020 election.
“We look forward to an exciting election ahead in 2020 as Republicans have true representation on the ballot in Senate District 7,” Myres said.
Boiller, who will be running as a Democrat in 2020, will need to find a new trick to keep her seat.
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