Kan. governor, conservative legislature commit to finding common ground in new session

TOPEKA, Kan. (KWCH) - A day filled with ceremony kicked off the 2023 legislative session Monday with Kansas Governor Laura Kelly taking the oath of office to begin her second term. Lawmakers struck a tone of working together and improving Kansas as many issues will be debated in the weeks and months ahead.

Monday’s ceremony also capped a political comeback for new Attorney General Kris Kobach. He has built a national reputation by advocating strict immigration and election laws but lost the 2018 governor’s race to Kelly and then a GOP primary for an open U.S. Senate seat in 2020.

Kelly used her inaugural address Monday to set Kansas apart from national politics and call for civility and unity.

“The middle of the road is where left and right come together, where well-intentioned people who hold different positions find common ground,” Kelly said. “Nobody gets everything they want, everyone gets something they want.”

It was similar tone in the Kansas House where new leadership is taking over for a new term. Republicans hold a supermajority in the Kansas House and Senate.

Republican Dan Hawkins is the new Speaker of the House and will have a major hand in shaping the priorities and legislation for the next two years.

“We will work across the aisle when we can,” he said. “We will disagree strongly but respectfully when we must, but in the end, our focus will be on serious, long-term solutions for our constituents.

Governor Kelly will lay out her agenda Wednesday night in her State of the State address. Her speech begins at 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed on the 12 News app and on www.kwch.com.

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