Richard Gene Kloos (born July 26, 1966) is a Republican member of the

Kansas Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of about 73,000 inhabitants. Members o ...

, representing the 19th district, which covers

Topeka Topeka ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeaste ...

and eastern Shawnee County, western Douglas County and all of

Osage County Osage County is the name of several counties in the United States: * Osage County, Kansas * Osage County, Missouri * Osage County, Oklahoma Osage County () is the largest county by area in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Created in 1907 when Ok ...

and Jefferson County.Carpenter, Tim
Ill-fated campaign for Kan. governor guides shocking run against icon Hensley
'' Hays Post'', Eagle Communications, November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2020. On November 3, 2020, he defeated Anthony Hensley, who had been holding office in the Kansas statehouse for 44 years, by 51.2% to 48.8%.Election Results
'' KSNT-TV Channel 27'',

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeastern Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2020 cen ...

, November 6, 2020.Wu, Titus
Rick Kloos pulls upset win over Anthony Hensley; GOP sweeps Topeka’s Kansas Senate races
''

Topeka Capitol-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 Jou ...

'', November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2020.

Career

In June 2009, Rick started God's Storehouse in

, a non-profit, community thrift store with over 80 employees.

2018 Kansas Governor campaign

Kloos ran as an Independent for governor, on a ticket with his son, Nathaniel, running for lieutenant governor. They finished last, in 5th place in the general election, with 6,584 votes, 0.6% of the total.Clarkin, Mary
High school dropout running for governor
''

Hutchinson News ''The Hutchinson News'' is a daily newspaper serving the city of Hutchinson, Kansas, United States. The publication was awarded the 1965 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service "for its courageous and constructive campaign, culminating in 1964, to br ...

'', December 27, 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2020.

2020 Kansas 19th Senate district campaign

Kloos ran unchallenged in the GOP primary; however, he received 6,758 in the primary.Feuerborn, Mark
Topeka thrift store founder ends state Democrat leader Hensley’s 27-year tenure
'' KSNT-TV Channel 27'',

, November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 20, 2020. He beat Anthony Hensley 16,141 votes to 15,383 votes, 51% to 49%, in the November 3, 2020 general election—in what Titus Wu of the ''

'' has called "a huge upset victory". Hensley had at least three times the campaign budget that Kloos had. Kloos opposes

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

and was endorsed by Kansans for Life. Hensley had represented the area for 44 years as either the state representative or state senator.Rick Kloos
''

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

''. Retrieved June 14, 2021. The Kloos campaign outraised Hensley $37,433 to $1,286.Anthony Hensley
''

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks and publishes data on campaign finance and lobbying, including a revolving door database which documents the individuals who have worked in both the public sector an ...

''. Retrieved June 14, 2021.

Personal life

Kloos and his wife Pennie have been married for 34 years and have lived in

Berryton, Kansas Berryton is an unincorporated community in Shawnee County, Kansas, United States. It is located east of the Topeka Regional Airport. History Berryton was laid out in 1888 and named for its two founders, George Washington Berry and his son Geor ...

for 22 years. They have four grown boys, along with seven grandchildren.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kloos, Rick Republican Party Kansas state senators Living people Politicians from Topeka, Kansas 1966 births 21st-century members of the Kansas Legislature