# 2014 Kansas gubernatorial election

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The 2014 Kansas gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014, to elect the governor of Kansas, concurrently with the election of Kansas' Class II U.S. Senate seat, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Incumbent Republican governor Sam Brownback ran for re-election to a second term. He was opposed in the general election by Democrat Paul Davis, the Minority Leader of the Kansas House of Representatives, and Libertarian attorney Keen Umbehr.
The election was viewed as a referendum on Brownback's aggressive tax cutting initiatives and his conservative values. The consensus among The Cook Political Report, Governing, The Rothenberg Political Report, Sabato's Crystal Ball, Daily Kos Elections, and others was that the contest was a tossup. Brownback won the election by a margin of 3.69%. Davis carried seven counties, all in eastern Kansas. As of 2025, this is the most recent time a Republican and/or a man was elected Governor of Kansas. This was also the last gubernatorial election in which a Democratic candidate won Jefferson County, as well as the last time that a candidate was elected Governor of Kansas by winning a majority of counties.

## Republican primary
### Candidates
#### Declared

* Sam Brownback, incumbent governor
   * Running mate: Jeff Colyer, incumbent lieutenant governor
* Jennifer Winn, businesswoman
   * Running mate: Robin Lais, advertising agency owner and natural healing shop owner
   * Former running mate: Ethan McCord, Iraq War veteran

#### Declined

* Kris Kobach, Secretary of State of Kansas (running for re-election)
* Steve Morris, former president of the Kansas Senate
* Sandy Praeger, Kansas Insurance Commissioner (endorsed Paul Davis)

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback | Jennifer Winn | Undecided |
| SurveyUSA | July 17–22, 2014 | 691 | ± 3.7% | 60% | 30% | 9% |
| SurveyUSA | June 19–23, 2014 | 508 | ± 4.4% | 55% | 37% | 8% |

### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Sam Brownback (incumbent) | 166,687 | 63.2 |
| | Republican | Jennifer Winn | 96,907 | 36.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 263,594 | 100 |

## Democratic primary
### Candidates
#### Declared

* Paul Davis, Minority Leader of the Kansas House of Representatives
   * Running mate: Jill Docking, businesswoman, former member of the Kansas Board of Regents and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 1996 (running for lieutenant governor)

#### Declined

* Carl Brewer, mayor of Wichita
* Jill Docking
* Tom Holland, state senator and nominee for governor in 2010
* Deb Miller, former secretary of the Kansas Department of Transportation
* Stephen Morris, former Republican president of the Kansas Senate
* Mark Parkinson, former governor, president and CEO of the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living
* Sandy Praeger, Republican Kansas Insurance Commissioner
* Joe Reardon, former mayor of Kansas City
* Joshua Svaty, vice president of The Land Institute and former Secretary of Agriculture of Kansas

### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Paul Davis | 66,357 | 100 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 66,357 | 100 |

## Libertarian nomination
### Candidates
#### Declared

* Keen Umbehr, attorney
   * Running mate: Josh Umbehr, physician and son of Keen Umbehr

## General election
### Debates

* Complete video of debate, September 6, 2014 - C-SPAN
* Complete video of debate, October 21, 2014 - C-SPAN

### Endorsements

Republican politicians
* Terry Bruce, Majority Leader of the Kansas Senate
* Jan Meyers, former U.S. representative
Democratic politicians
* Nathan Barnes, former Wyandotte County Commissioner
Other individuals
* Carly Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard
Organizations
* National Federation of Independent Business
* Kansas Rifle Association
Democratic politicians
* Jill Docking, businesswoman, former member of the Kansas Board of Regents and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 1996
* Anthony Hensley, Minority Leader of the Kansas Senate
* John E. Moore, former lieutenant governor of Kansas
Republican politicians
* Barbara P. Allen, former state senator, former state representative and former Assistant Attorney General of Kansas
* Denise Apt, former state representative
* Jayne Aylward, former state representative
* Ginger Barr, former state representative
* Dick Bond, former member of the Kansas State Senate
* Ken Bower, former mayor of Leavenworth
* Jim Braden, former speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives
* Carol Brandert, member of the Salina Public Schools Board of Education
* Nancy Brown, former state representative, former member of the Kansas State Emergency Response Commission
* Pete Brungardt, former state senator and former mayor of Salina
* Mark Buhler, former state senator
* Bud Burke, former president of the Kansas Senate and former state representative
* David R. Corbin, former state senator
* Ray Cox, former state representative
* Val DeFever, former member of the Kansas State Board of Education
* Brad Dillon, Reno County Commissioner and former Hutchinson City Councilman
* Gary Denning, former member of the Salina Public Schools Board of Education and former Salina City prosecutor
* David Drovetta, former mayor of Gardner and former Gardner City Councilman
* Sandy Duncan, former state representative
* Nedra Elbl, chairwoman of the Salina Public Schools Board of Education and former president of the Kansas National Education Association
* Jane M. Eldredge, former state senator
* Roger Elliott, member of the Andover Public Schools Board of Education
* Tim Emert, member of the Kansas Board of Regents and former Majority Leader of the Kansas State
* Cindy Empson, former state representative
* Bill Falstad, former chairman of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, former mayor of Fredonia and former chairman of the Kansas Republican Party
* Ron Fox, former state representative
* Bob Frey, former judge on the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals, former Majority Leader of the Kansas State and former state representative
* Fred Gatlin, former state representative
* Crosby Gernon, Mayor of Hiawatha
* John Golden, former state representative
* Pat Grimwood, former member of the Salina Public Schools Board of Education
* John Grange, former state representative and former chairman of the El Dorado Public Schools Board of Education
* Howard Gray, superintendent of Pratt, Plains and Kismet
* Kristin Gunn, former mayor of Salina and former Salina City Commissioner
* Steve Hale, former president of the Gardner-Edgerton USD 231 Board of Education and former Gardner City Councilman
* Floris Jean Hampton, member of the Kansas Association of Community College Trustees Board of Regents and former member of the Kansas Board of Regents
* Randall Hardy, Salina City Commissioner
* Joleen Hill, former member of the Manhattan–Ogden Board of Education
* Gennifer House, former president of the Goodland Public Schools Board of Education
* Dave Huff, former state representative
* Terrie Huntington, former state senator and former state representative
* William Kassebaum, former state representative and son of former U.S. senator Nancy Kassebaum
* Fred Kerr, former majority leader of the Kansas Senate
* Wendell Lady, former speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives
* Audrey Langworthy, former state senator
* Carol Lehman, former mayor of Gardner and former Gardner City Councilwoman
* Fred Lorentz, former 31st Judicial District Judge and former state representative
* Jim Lowther, former state representative
* Bob Marshall, former state senator
* R.D. "Bob" Miller, former member of the Kansas State Parole Board and former state representative
* Robert "R.H." Miller, former speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives
* Stephen Morris, former president of the Kansas Senate
* Lana Oleen, former majority leader of the Kansas Senate
* Bill Otto, former state representative
* Tim Owens, former state senator and former state representative
* Sandy Praeger, Kansas Insurance Commissioner
* Jill Quigley, former state representative
* Jim Randall, mayor pro tem of Olathe
* Gerry Ray, former state representative
* Roger Reitz, former state senator, former state representative and former mayor of Manhattan
* Marge Roberson, former mayor of Newton, former Newton City Commissioner and former Harvey County Commissioner
* Ed Rolfs, former Kansas Secretary of Revenue and former state representative
* Charles Roth, former state representative and former mayor of Salina
* Ellen Samuelson, former state representative
* Debbie Schauf, former state representative
* Gary Sherrer, former lieutenant governor of Kansas
* Shelby Smith, former lieutenant governor of Kansas
* Sheryl Spalding, former state representative and former regional vice president of the Kansas Association of School Boards
* Bob W. Storey, former state senator
* Ralph Tanner, former state representative
* Ruth Teichman, former state senator
* Lee Thompson, former United States Attorney for the District of Kansas
* Carolyn Tillotson, former state senator and former mayor of Leavenworth
* Dwayne Umbarger, former state senator
* John Vanier, former mayor of Salina and former Salina City Commissioner
* John Vratil, former state senator
* Winton A. Winter, Jr., former state senator
* Robert S. Wunsch, former state representative
* David Wysong, former state senator and former Johnson County Commissioner
* Jim Yonally, former state representative

### Predictions

| Source | Ranking | As of |
| The Cook Political Report | Tossup | November 3, 2014 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Lean D (flip) | November 3, 2014 |
| Rothenberg Political Report | Tossup | November 3, 2014 |
| Real Clear Politics | Tossup | November 3, 2014 |

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Paul Davis (D) | Keen Umbehr (L) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | November 1–3, 2014 | 963 | ± 3.2% | 45% | 46% | 4% | — | 4% |
| Public Policy Polling | November 1–3, 2014 | 963 | ± 3.2% | 47% | 48% | — | — | 3% |
| Public Policy Polling | October 30–31, 2014 | 752 | ± ? | 44% | 48% | 5% | — | 3% |
| YouGov | October 25–31, 2014 | 1,137 | ± 4.8% | 39% | 38% | 2% | 1% | 21% |
| Fox News | October 28–30, 2014 | 907 | ± 3% | 42% | 48% | 4% | <1% | 5% |
| Survey USA | October 22–26, 2014 | 623 | ± 4% | 43% | 46% | 5% | — | 7% |
| CBS News/NYT/YouGov | October 16–23, 2014 | 1,973 | ± 4% | 43% | 40% | — | 1% | 16% |
| NBC News/Marist | October 18–22, 2014 | 757 LV | ± 3.6% | 44% | 45% | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| NBC News/Marist | October 18–22, 2014 | 1,055 RV | ± 3% | 43% | 43% | 6% | 1% | 7% |
| Rasmussen Reports | October 20–21, 2014 | 960 | ± 3% | 45% | 52% | — | 1% | 2% |
| Gravis Marketing | October 20–21, 2014 | 1,124 | ± 3% | 44% | 49% | — | — | 7% |
| Monmouth University | October 16–19, 2014 | 429 | ± 4.7% | 45% | 50% | — | 2% | 5% |
| Remington Research | October 9–12, 2014 | 1,091 | ± 2.97% | 48% | 45% | 3% | — | 4% |
| Public Policy Polling | October 9–12, 2014 | 1,081 | ± 3% | 42% | 42% | 6% | — | 10% |
| Public Policy Polling | October 9–12, 2014 | 1,081 | ± 3% | 44% | 45% | — | — | 12% |
| Fox News | October 4–7, 2014 | 702 | ± 3.5% | 46% | 40% | 2% | 2% | 11% |
| CNN/ORC | October 2–6, 2014 | 687 | ± 3.5% | 49% | 49% | — | — | 2% |
| SurveyUSA | October 2–5, 2014 | 549 | ± 4.3% | 42% | 47% | 4% | — | 7% |
| Gravis Marketing | September 30–October 1, 2014 | 850 | ± 3% | 40% | 48% | — | — | 12% |
| NBC News/Marist | September 27–October 1, 2014 | 636 LV | ± 3.9% | 43% | 44% | 4% | 1% | 7% |
| NBC News/Marist | September 27–October 1, 2014 | 1,097 RV | ± 3% | 41% | 43% | 5% | 1% | 10% |
| CBS News/NYT/YouGov | September 20–October 1, 2014 | 2,013 | ± 3% | 45% | 42% | — | 0% | 12% |
| Suffolk University | September 27–30, 2014 | 500 | ± 4.4% | 42% | 46% | 6% | — | 7% |
| Fort Hays State University | September 10–27, 2014 | 685 | ± 3.8% | 37% | 39% | 9% | — | 16% |
| Remington Research | September 23, 2014 | 625 | ± 3.91% | 44% | 46% | 5% | — | 5% |
| Rasmussen Reports | September 16–17, 2014 | 750 | ± 4% | 43% | 47% | — | 4% | 6% |
| Fox News | September 14–16, 2014 | 604 | ± 4% | 41% | 45% | 4% | — | 8% |
| Public Policy Polling | September 11–14, 2014 | 1,328 | ± 2.7% | 38% | 42% | 7% | — | 14% |
| Public Policy Polling | September 11–14, 2014 | 1,328 | ± 2.7% | 39% | 45% | — | — | 15% |
| KSN/SurveyUSA | September 4–7, 2014 | 555 | ± 4.2% | 40% | 47% | 5% | — | 7% |
| CBS News/NYT/YouGov | August 18–September 2, 2014 | 839 | ± 5% | 47% | 40% | — | 2% | 11% |
| SurveyUSA | August 20–23, 2014 | 560 | ± 4.2% | 40% | 48% | 5% | — | 6% |
| Public Policy Polling | August 14–17, 2014 | 903 | ± 3.3% | 37% | 39% | 9% | — | 15% |
| Rasmussen Reports | August 6–7, 2014 | 750 | ± 4% | 41% | 51% | — | 3% | 5% |
| CBS News/NYT/YouGov | July 5–24, 2014 | 1,274 | ± 6.1% | 52% | 40% | — | 3% | 5% |
| SurveyUSA | July 17–22, 2014 | 1,208 | ± 2.9% | 40% | 48% | 5% | — | 7% |
| SurveyUSA | June 19–23, 2014 | 1,068 | ± 3.1% | 41% | 47% | — | 5% | 7% |
| Rasmussen Reports | April 16–17, 2014 | 750 | ± 4% | 47% | 40% | — | 6% | 7% |
| Public Policy Polling | April 1–2, 2014 | 886 | ± 3.1% | 41% | 45% | — | — | 14% |
| Public Policy Polling | February 18–20, 2014 | 693 | ± 3.7% | 40% | 42% | — | — | 18% |
| Wilson Perkins Allen | January 29, 2014 | ? | ± ? | 42% | 31% | — | — | 27% |
| SurveyUSA | October 23–24, 2013 | 511 | ± 4.4% | 39% | 43% | — | 12% | 6% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Carl Brewer (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | February 21–24, 2013 | 1,229 | ± 2.8% | 44% | 40% | — | 15% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Tom Holland (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | February 21–24, 2013 | 1,229 | ± 2.8% | 45% | 38% | — | 17% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Mark Parkinson (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | February 21–24, 2013 | 1,229 | ± 2.8% | 45% | 39% | — | 16% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Joe Reardon (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | February 21–24, 2013 | 1,229 | ± 2.8% | 45% | 36% | — | 19% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Kathleen Sebelius (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | February 21–24, 2013 | 1,229 | ± 2.8% | 48% | 43% | — | 9% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Sam Brownback (R) | Chad Taylor (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | February 21–24, 2013 | 1,229 | ± 2.8% | 44% | 34% | — | 22% |

### Results

Kansas gubernatorial election, 2014 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Sam Brownback (incumbent) | 433,196 | 49.82% | −13.46% |
| | Democratic | Paul Davis | 401,100 | 46.13% | +13.92% |
| | Libertarian | Keen Umbehr | 35,206 | 4.05% | +1.37% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 869,502 | 100.00% | N/A |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

#### Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

* Crawford (largest city: Pittsburg)
* Jefferson (largest municipality: Valley Falls)
* Lyon (largest municipality: Emporia)
* Riley (largest municipality: Manhattan)
* Shawnee (largest municipality: Topeka)