The 2002 Kansas gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2002. Incumbent Governor

Bill Graves William Preston Graves (born January 9, 1953) is an American former politician who was the 43rd governor of Kansas from 1995 until 2003. Career Graves was born in Salina, Kansas to parents who owned a trucking firm. After graduating from Ka ...

, a Republican, was barred from seeking a third term by the Kansas Constitution.

Kansas Insurance Commissioner The Kansas Insurance Commissioner (KIC), in full the Kansas State Insurance Commissioner, has the primary responsibility to the people whose personal lives are protected by insurance in the state of Kansas. It is an elected position and is curr ...

Kathleen Sebelius Kathleen Sebelius (; née Gilligan, born May 15, 1948) is an American businesswoman and politician who served as the 21st United States secretary of Health and Human Services from 2009 until 2014. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Sebeli ...

, the

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

nominee, ran against

Kansas State Treasurer The State Treasurer of Kansas is the chief custodian of Kansas’s cash deposits, monies from bond sales, and other securities and collateral and directs the investments of those assets. The Treasurer provides for the safe and efficient operation ...

Tim Shallenburger, the Republican nominee, with Sebelius defeating Shallenburger to become the second female

Governor of Kansas A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

after

Joan Finney Joan Marie Finney (née McInroy; February 12, 1925 – July 28, 2001) was an American politician who served as the 42nd governor of Kansas from 1991 to 1995. Prior to her tenure as governor, Finney served four terms as the Kansas state treasurer ...

who served as governor from 1991 to 1995.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

* Tim Shallenburger,

(1999–present) and former state representative (1987-1998) **Running mate:

Dave Lindstrom David Alan Lindstrom (born November 16, 1954) is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL), playing eight seasons (1978–1986) for the Kansas City Chiefs. Drafted by the San Diego Chargers in 1977, Lindstrom w ...

, former

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...

defensive end and businessman *Dave Kerr, Kansas State Senator **Running mate: Mary Birch, former president of the

Overland Park Overland Park ( ) is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas. Located in Johnson County, Kansas, it is one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the most populous suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. As ...

Chamber of Commerce (1984-2002) *

Bob Knight Robert Montgomery Knight (born October 25, 1940) is an American former basketball coach. Nicknamed "the General", Knight won 902 NCAA Division I men's college basketball games, a record at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-ti ...

, Mayor of Wichita, Kansas **Running mate: Kent Glasscock, Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives (2001-2003) and state representative (1991-2003), was Carla Stovall's running mate until she dropped out. *Dan Bloom, real estate developer and former Superintendent of the Eudora school district **Running mate: Eric Bloom, architectural engineering student

Withdrawn

Carla Stovall Carla J. Stovall (born March 18, 1957, Hardtner, Kansas) - also known as Carla Stovall Steckline - is a Republican Party (United States), Republican politician from Marion, Kansas who served as Kansas Attorney General, Attorney General of the S ...

Kansas Attorney General The Attorney General of Kansas is a statewide elected official responsible for providing legal services to the state government of Kansas. Kris Kobach assumed office on January 9, 2023. Divisions * Criminal Justice * Civil Litigation * Consumer ...

(1995-2003). ** Running mate: Kent Glasscock, Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives (2001-2003) and state representative (1991-2003) Initially, Stovall was one of the presumed "front-runner" candidates, and her anticipated run against the probable Democratic nominee, Kansas Insurance Commissioner Kathleen Sebelius, drew national attention as becoming possibly a rare "woman-vs.-woman" gubernatorial race.Clymer, Adam
"In 2002, Woman's Place May Be the Statehouse,"
date, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

,'' retrieved July 28, 2020 Broder, David
"Closing The Governor Gap,"
February 20, 2002, ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

,'' retrieved July 28, 2020 Though the front-runner among moderate candidates

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...

:
"Decision: Lt. Governor says he won't wait for formal announcement from Stovall before he makes decision,"
April 11, 2002, ''

Garden City Telegram The Garden City Telegram is a local newspaper for Garden City, Kansas, published six days a week, with a circulation of nearly 8,000. The ''Telegram'' was purchased by Hutchinson, Kansas-based Harris Enterprises in 1953. In November 2016, GateH ...

,'' page 1, from NewspaperArchive.com (OCR text), retrieved July 28, 2020"Stovall Drops Out,"
April 16, 2002, ''

Lawrence Journal-World The ''Lawrence Journal-World'' is a daily newspaper published in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, by Ogden Newspapers. History Though the ''Journal-World'' title came into existence in 1911, the paper dates itself to 1858, according to the ...

, retrieved July 28, 2020'' — and confident that she would win if she stayed in the race — Stovall dropped out in April, 2002, citing a lack of enthusiasm for campaigning, and for the job of governor,"Sebelius: A Legacy,"
April 28, 2009, ''

Topeka Capital-Journal ''The Topeka Capital-Journal'' is a daily newspaper in Topeka, Kansas, owned by Gannett. History The paper was formed following numerous name changes and mergers, including the merger of ''The Topeka Daily Capital'' and ''The Topeka State Jour ...

, retrieved July 28, 2020'' and announced plans to marry Kansas media mogul

Larry Steckline Larry Steckline is a prominent Kansas broadcasting entrepreneur, and radio and television personality, particularly known for his Kansas agriculture news/feature/commentary programs.La Pierre, Karen (Kansas Agland)"Larry Steckline: One NW Kansas ...

, whom she married in August."Kansas official plans to marry,"
May 9, 2002, ''

Daily Oklahoman ''The Oklahoman'' is the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma, United States, and is the only regional daily that covers the Greater Oklahoma City area. The Alliance for Audited Media (formerly Audit Bureau Circulation) lists it as the 59th larges ...

'', retrieved July 29, 2020"Stovall-Steckline wedding,"
last modified Nov. 13, 2002, ''

Marion County Record The Marion County Record is a weekly newspaper published in Marion, Kansas, and serves as the official newspaper of City of Marion and Marion County. The paper publishes every Wednesday. History Origins The newspaper's first issue came off the ...

,'' retrieved July 29, 2020 Stovall's abrupt withdrawal threw the moderate wing of the Kansas Republican Party into chaos, as they scrambled to replace her. Kent Glasscock, her running mate, was the heir-apparent, and claimed entitlement to Stovall's campaign funds, but conservative opponent Tim Shallenberger, the incumbent State Treasurer, argued that the funds, per his interpretation of state law, had to be returned to the state Republican party, or to the donors, a charity, or the state government's general revenue fund. Additional Republican candidates began to emerge, also, further complicating the race. Glasscock ultimately became a running mate for gubernatorial candidate

.Beatty, Bob and Virgil W. Dean, editors
"Doing What Needed to Get Done, When It Needed to Get Done”: A Conversation with Former Governor Bill Graves,"
undated '' Kansas History'' pp.172-197, retrieved July 29, 2020 from

Washburn University Washburn University (WU) is a public university in Topeka, Kansas, United States. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as professional programs in law and business. Washburn has 550 faculty members, who teach more than 6,100 ...

reference archives. Stovall's withdrawal was credited with giving advantage to the Democratic nominee (and ultimate victor), Katheleen Sebelius.Beatty, Bob and Linsey Moddelmog, editors
"Find a Way to Find Common Ground": A Conversation with Former Governor Kathleen Sebelius,"
Winter 2017-2018, '' Kansas History,'' retrieved July 29, 2020; pp.277-278: former Gov. Sebelius: "I entered the race henCarla tovall asin the primary, and... within four months

he was He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

dropping out. So

he race He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

changed dramatically."

Results

General election

Predictions

Polling

Results

Notes

References

{{United States elections, 2002

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains independence from Indonesia and ...

Gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to ...

November 2002 events November 2002 events in North America November 2002 events in the United States 2002 elections 2002 elections in North America 2002 elections in the United States 2002 in Kansas