Jake LaTurner won Kansas’ 2nd Congressional District Republican primary with 49% of the vote to incumbent Steve Watkins’ 34% and Dennis Taylor’s 17%, with 57% of precincts reporting. Watkins is the sixth incumbent representative defeated in a primary in 2020. He was first elected in 2018, defeating Paul Davis (D) by less than 1 percentage point.
Gov. Sam Brownback (R) appointed LaTurner as Kansas treasurer in 2017, and LaTurner was elected to remain in office in 2018. He is the youngest statewide elected official in the U.S.
On July 14, Watkins was charged with voter fraud, having used the address of a UPS store on his voter registration form. Watkins said he mistakenly used his mailing address instead of his residential address and that the charges were politically motivated.
