Anti-abortion amendment exposes flaw in Kansas campaign law | Dion Lefler

I remember the first time I voted after moving to Kansas and it was one of those moments when I remember thinking, “I am very someplace else.”

It was the 1998 Republican primary matching the incumbent and moderate governor Bill Graves against Kansans for Life-funded anti-abortion firebrand David Miller. The Democrats had the choice between then-House Minority Leader Tom Sawyer and anti-gay, anti-abortion fanatic Fred Phelps.

At the entrance to my polling place, a west Wichita Baptist church, voters walked in under a giant banner reading: “CHOOSE LIFE.”

I had voted for 20 years in California and Nevada leading up to that day. I’d voted at libraries, community centers, even the garage at a private home.

I had never voted at a church, much less one that felt emboldened to place such a blatant and obviously political message where voters had no choice but to see it on their way to the voting booth.

Well, here we go again.

On Tuesday, voters will be going to the polls to decide the fate of Value Them Both, a proposed constitutional amendment that would empower the Legislature to ban abortions.

And those voters may have to run a gantlet of “vote yes” signs to get in to their polling places.

Here’s why: The state bans electioneering and signage within 250 feet of the door to a polling place. But those doors are often at the back of the church, leaving them the option to line their entrances and driveways with as many “vote yes” signs as they’d care to put up.

The “vote no” side won’t have access because the church property is private property and they can’t go there without permission.

It constitutes an unnecessary and unfair advantage for the pro-amendment churches.

This isn’t ordinarily an issue because churches can’t advocate for candidates without risking their tax-free status. But they can advocate for ballot measures and churches, including some that are polling places on Election Day, have been leading the campaign for Value Them Both.

In fact, apart from yard signs and bumper stickers. there has been little public campaigning for the amendment outside of right-leaning churches.

Central Christian Church on North Rock Road — which will be a polling place on Election Day, was the host church for a massive rally for the amendment headlined by social conservative celebs Matt and Mercedes Schlapp. And the largest source of funding for the Value Them Both campaign is the Roman Catholic Church.

Fifty-four of Sedgwick County’s 82 polling places are at churches.

Of those, a canvass by Eagle staff found eight with signs backing the amendment. While there are churches with “vote no” signs, we didn’t find any that will also serve as polling places.

Election Commissioner Angela Caudillo said some have agreed to remove their signs on Election Day. But it’s their option whether they do it.

It’s too late to do anything about it in time for Tuesday, but this election exposed a problem that’s been around for decades and needs fixing going forward in the cause of free and fair elections.

Here are three simple ways it can be solved:

▪ Pass a state law expanding the no-electioneering rule to include the 250-foot circle, plus the boundary lines of the property hosting the polling site.

▪ Require anyone hosting a polling place to agree not to campaign or allow campaigning on their property on Election Day. If they won’t, find another polling place.

▪ Hold our elections using public buildings and neutral sites.

It’s not that difficult and it’s the right thing to do.