Less than two weeks before the Aug. 2 primary election, both candidates for the Republican nomination in the “Big First” U.S. House district in Kansas share a priority — getting a seat on the House Agriculture Committee after the first gap in membership in a century. Tea Party favorite Tim Huelskamp, who was removed from the committee as a troublemaker four years ago, says he’s sure to be reinstated next year, but challenger Roger Marshall says, as a peacemaker, he will have a better chance.
Agriculture is a leading industry in the district, which is bigger in land area than the state of Illinois and ranks third in the nation in the value of farm and ranch production—more than $14 billion in 2012. Covering the northwestern two-thirds of Kansas, the district covers vast stretches of wheat and cattle territory and the meatpacking cities of Liberal, Dodge City and Garden City.
Marshall, an obstetrician, has made membership on the Agriculture Committee a major issue in his campaign. GOP House leaders removed Huelskamp from the Agriculture and Budget committees in 2012 after he opposed GOP legislation. Huelskamp was among 63 Tea Party-influenced Republicans who voted against the 2014 farm law, which expended the federally subsidized crop-insurance program, because he wanted larger cuts in food stamps.
During a final pre-election debate this week, Huelskamp said he fought for conservative principles in Washington. “What has he ever done for Kansas?” was Marshall’s response, according to the Hutchinson Daily News. Both candidates described themselves as fifth-generation farmers and stressed their conservative political views.
Farm groups, including the Kansas Livestock Association and the Kansas Farm Bureau, have endorsed Marshall, along with corn and sorghum groups. The National Rifle Association backs Huelskamp. The fiscally conservative Club for Growth supports Huelskamp while ESAFund, a super PAC, says Huelskamp “went Washington” and has ignored his district.
Only three members of the House have been defeated in primary elections this year; two because of redistricting and one who was under indictment.
Marshall is the greatest threat yet in Huelskamp’s 20 years in politics. He served four terms in the Kansas Senate before election to the U.S. House in 2010. Marshall, who is also a hospital executive, has not held elective office. “I understand agriculture and I understand business,” Marshall said in a campaign statement in March.
Huelskamp said he has mended fences with party leaders. “I am on the Steering Committee that actually makes these decisions. I will be back on the Ag Committee,” he said during the debate on KWCH-TV. “Agriculture is the heart and future of rural Kansas. We need to continue to promote and protect that,” Huelskamp said, according to the Wichita Eagle.