DALLAS - Voters in Kansas kept Republican Gov. Sam Brownback at the helm, despite a fierce campaign to throw him overboard.
After trailing Democratic state House Minority Leader Paul Davis in the polls for several weeks, Brownback managed a comeback that gave him more than 50% of the vote on Nov. 4.
"This is a fabulous state," Brownback declared at his victory party. "We're going to make it even better."
While Brownback denied that his tax cuts had created budget problems for the state, Davis pledged to work with the governor on overcoming an estimated $282 million budget shortfall for the current fiscal year.
"We have very real challenges to face as a state, and the only real way we can overcome these challenges is to face them together," Davis said in a speech conceding the race to Brownback.
In a hard fought campaign, Davis garnered support from several moderate Republican leaders who found Brownback's form of conservatism too harsh for the largely rural state.
Moody's Investors Service downgraded Kansas' general obligation debt to Aa2 from Aa1 on April 30, in part because tax cuts led to lower revenues. Standard & Poor's lowered the issuer credit rating to AA from AA-plus on Aug. 6 and retained a negative outlook.
Brownback said the tax cuts will act as an economic stimulus resulting in higher revenues from increased employment in the state.
On the Friday before the election, Kansas Secretary of Revenue Nick Jordan reported that revenues for October fell $23 million below projections.
The shortfall was the fifth in seven months and the second in the current fiscal year that began July 1.
