Republican Olathe Charlotte Esau has defeated Democratic incumbent Dennis Miller in Senate District 14, flipping the script in the rematch of their 2022 contest.
Esau, who previously represented District 14 from 2019 to 2023, led Miller 52% to 48% with all precincts reporting, according to unofficial election results from the Kansas Secretary of State’s office.
Miller, an Air Force veteran who defeated Esau by 221 votes two years ago, served on the House veterans and military committee, as well as the local government, tax and welfare reform committees.
Neither candidate immediately responded to requests for comment late Tuesday evening.
Esau, co-owner of a consulting firm, ran on a tax relief platform that prioritized public safety and supporting public education and expanded job training opportunities, according to her campaign website.
Esau also pushed back against attack ads that focused on her stance on reproductive rights, saying she has “never advocated for a total ban on abortion.”
“Birth control. IVF. Freedom in healthcare. The list of lies about what I supposedly want to ban grows with every attack,” Esau wrote on her website. “These are the facts: I do not support a ban on contraception and IVF. I am a staunch supporter of healthcare freedom on these and other issues.”
Her husband, Keith Esau, previously held the District 14 seat from 2013 to 2019.
Esau’s victory was one of a handful of Republican triumphs in Johnson County on Tuesday that helped the GOP maintain and expand a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers of the Kansas Legislature.
Republicans also appeared poised to capture a House seat in Olathe’s District 15, where Democratic incumbent Allison Hougland trailed Republican Lauren Bohi by 131 votes with all precincts reporting. That outcome could still be affected by late ballots and provisional ballots.
Bohi, an administrative assistant at the KidsTLC child behavior clinic, did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.
Hougland, a real estate agent, told The Star earlier in the evening that she expected the race to be close. She won the seat in 2022 after defeating Republican Matt Bingesser by 78 votes.
