Democrat presidential challenger joins Kansas special election

TOPEKA (KSNT) – A new Democrat presidential candidate has signed up to the upcoming Presidential Preference Primary (PPP) in Kansas shortly before the noon deadline.

Jason Michael Palmer is now officially in the running for the PPP in what is now turning into a crowded competition. Palmer signed up for the PPP on Jan. 19, according to the Kansas Secretary of State’s (SOS) website. Other candidates who’ve signed up include:

Democrat President Joe Biden

Former Republican President Donald Trump

Republican former Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley

Democrat Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips

Republican pastor Ryan Binkley.

Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

Who is Jason Michael Palmer?

Palmer has served in major executive and leadership positions across several organizations over the years such as Microsoft, Kaplan Education and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, according to his campaign website. He is described as an education technology entrepreneur, executive and investor.

Major talking points for his campaign include supporting small businesses, moving the Democrat Party towards more pro-freedom and pro-innovation policies and modernizing the U.S. government.

What is the Presidential Preference Primary?

The PPP has only been used twice before in Kansas history in 1980 and 1992. It is described as a nontraditional election by the SOS. This is because the timelines and statutes for this election are different when compared to other primary elections or the general election. For example, there will be no three-day grace period for any mail-in ballots after election day. Upcoming deadlines before the election include:

Jan. 2 – Deadline for political parties to send the party rules for delegate allocation to the SOS.

Jan. 16 – Deadline for political parties to let the SOS know who is eligible to vote in each party’s PPP.

Jan. 19 – Candidates have until noon on Jan. 19 to file to run in the PPP.

Feb. 20 – Deadline to register to vote or update voter registration information to participate in the PPP. This is also the last day to apply for an advance voting mail ballot.

Feb. 28 – First day of advance voting. Advance ballots by mail are transmitted. In-person advance voting can also start.

March 18 – Last day for in-person advance voting.

March 19 – PPP begins.

A PPP requires an act by the Kansas Legislature to be conducted. The enactment takes responsibility away for conducting a caucus from the Republican and Democrat parties in Kansas, instead giving it to the state. It is called a preference primary as it is an election where the vote totals are given to a political party to allocate delegates to candidates at the national convention. Voters will not select the party candidate in this election.

You can learn more about the PPP by clicking here.

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