Today’s primary election is a big one for Douglas County voters. Some races will likely be decided in the primary election, and a lot hangs in the balance. Here’s our key need-to-know election info, all in one place.
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Lots of mailers have gone out throughout this campaign season, including some that cite our coverage as a source. We would strongly encourage readers to go directly to the source and read our coverage when deciding how they want to vote in this important election, rather than relying on information that may be skewed, misrepresented or false.
Five Douglas County elected offices and several state Legislature seats representing Lawrence are up for grabs this election year.
In addition to all the coverage below, you can see our YouTube playlist of candidate forum recordings at this link or by visiting our YouTube channel, youtube.com/@LawrenceKSTimes. You’ll find additional news coverage of the election — including results once they become available shortly after 7 p.m. Tuesday — at lawrencekstimes.com/election2024.
The Nov. 5 general election, too, will be important. We’ll have plenty of coverage leading up to the big day, but for now we have focused our resources on the races with primaries. See races that have no primary elections at this link. Those are also noted below.
This guide was first published July 21. We’re updating and reposting it to make it easy to find as folks do their last-minute homework and decide how they want to cast their votes.
Quick must-know details:
• Check which districts you’re in and where to go to vote by visiting myvoteinfo.voteks.org. (Pro tip: Take a screenshot so you can reference your districts again quickly!)
• Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Primary Election Day, which is Tuesday, Aug. 6. You will need a driver’s license or valid ID to cast your ballot in person. As long as you’re in line to vote by 7 p.m., you will be allowed to cast your ballot.
• If you received an advance ballot to vote by mail, you can take it to any polling place or any ballot dropbox until 7 p.m. on Election Day. If you mail it, it must be postmarked on or before Tuesday to be counted.
• Trouble at the polls? Contact the ACLU election protection hotline.
(That’s 866-687-8683 for English; 888-839-8682 for Spanish; 888-274-8683 for Asian languages; and 844-925-5287 for Arabic.)
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Quick breakdown of races in the primary:
• Three Democrats are running for Douglas County DA, and the primary winner will face a Republican DA candidate in the general election. It’s the first time in 20 years that a Republican has run for the seat.
• Four of five Douglas County Commission seats are on the ballot.
• There are primary races in three Kansas Senate districts that represent parts of Lawrence and Douglas County.
• There are primary races in three Kansas House districts that represent parts of Lawrence and Douglas County, and two of them will likely be decided in August.
Jump to a section:
• Douglas County district attorney race
• Douglas County Commission races
• Kansas Senate races
• Kansas House races
Have a question that isn’t answered in our coverage? Please let us know ASAP!
Douglas County district attorney race:
This is a countywide seat, so all Democratic Douglas County voters will see this primary race on their ballots.
Mackenzie Clark/Lawrence Times
Candidates for Douglas County Commission:
Double-check your district by visiting myvoteinfo.voteks.org.
The District 1 seat, currently held by Patrick Kelly, was included in the 2022 election. Commissioners serve four-year terms, so that seat will be on the ballot again in 2026.
Meet the candidates for Douglas County Commission District 2
Incumbent Shannon Reid and current Lawrence City Commissioner Lisa Larsen are running as Democrats to represent Douglas County Commission District 2. The candidates shared their thoughts on how wind and solar energy should be handled, property tax reductions and more.
Meet the candidates for Douglas County Commission District 4
Two Democrats, a Republican and a Libertarian are running to represent Eudora, parts of eastern Lawrence, and east-central Douglas County as the commissioner for new District 4. Candidates shared the personal experiences they believe qualify them, views on solar and wind energy and more.
Meet the candidates for Douglas County Commission District 3
The incumbent Democrat faces two Republican challengers to represent Douglas County Commission District 3, which includes much of west Lawrence and most of the western side of the county. We asked their positions on wind and solar energy, what issues drove them to run and more.
Meet the candidates for Douglas County Commission District 5
Two Democrats, a Republican and a Libertarian are running to represent Baldwin City, parts of south-central Lawrence and much of southeastern Douglas County as commissioner for District 5. We asked the top three issues driving them to run for this office, a question they’d ask their opponents and more.
Mackenzie Clark/Lawrence Times
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Candidates for Kansas Senate:
Double-check your district by visiting myvoteinfo.voteks.org.
Senate District 3 has no primary election.
Mac Moore/Lawrence Times
Candidates for Kansas House:
Double-check your district by visiting myvoteinfo.voteks.org.
House Districts 5, 117 and 47 have no primary races. Incumbents in House Districts 43, 44 and 45 (Rep. Bill Sutton, Rep. Barbara Ballard and Rep. Mike Amyx, respectively) are running unopposed.
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This post is by the Lawrence Times news team.
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