19 January 2024
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is the latest presidential candidate to sign up to the upcoming Presidential Preference Primary (PPP) in Kansas.
Republican candidate Ron DeSantis has officially joined the PPP in Kansas happening in March, 2024. He joins five others who’ve also signed on to the special election such as Democrat President Joe Biden, former Republican President Donald Trump, the Republican former Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley, Democrat Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips and Republican pastor Ryan Binkley. DeSantis signed up for the PPP on Jan. 19, just hours before the noon deadline, according to the Kansas Secretary of State’s (SOS) website.
Who is Ron DeSantis?
DeSantis has appeared as one of the top contenders for the Republican presidential ticket, coming in second place in the recent Iowa Caucus behind Trump. He launched his presidential campaign in May last year during a live Twitter announcement.
He has achieved national fame for legislation like the “Don’t Say Gay” law banning the instruction or discussion in the classroom of LGBTQ issues in Florida public schools for all grades. Under his leadership, Florida also banned abortions following six weeks of pregnancy.
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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