Jill Ward and David Hickman: Get to know the Wichita-area primary candidates

Two conservative candidates — Jill Ward and David Hickman — are running for a Kansas House seat after the retirement of longtime state Rep. Brenda Landwehr.

Landwehr was first elected in 1997 and stayed in office until 2012. She then returned to office in 2017. But her possible replacements in the Republican primary have little to no political experience. The winner of the primary takes on John Burke in the general election this November.

The primary election is Aug. 6. You can find your polling place here.

Both Republican candidates were asked the same questions about their priorities for office and how they would vote on certain issues.

Here are their answers:

Who are the Republican candidates in Kansas House District 105?

Jill Ward

Jill Ward is an account executive and a small-business owner. The lifelong Wichitan comes from a large family and understands “the pressures put on families and the challenges they face while they pursue their dreams.”

Ward isn’t a career politician and wanted to run for the state Legislature after she helped change the state’s hit-and-run law after the death of her child. She supports base conservative principles — like the Second Amendment, growing the economy and reigning in the size of government.

“My faith and my family are the most important things in my life, and they drive my system of beliefs and my priorities,” her campaign website said.

She’s been endorsed by Kansans for Life; the Wichita Chamber; the Kansas Chamber; the National Rifle Association; Sen. Chase Blasi, a Wichita Republican; and Rep. Brenda Landwehr, the Republican legislator who currently holds the seat.

Ward didn’t respond to The Beacon’s multiple requests for comment. Her responses are pulled from her Facebook page, campaign website and an interview on the John Whitmer radio show.

David Hickman

David Hickman is a longtime Kansas resident. Hickman has worked in pastoral ministry leadership, retail and manufacturing. He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Bible psychology and Christian education.

He became interested in running after complaining about the political landscape. Hickman leans conservative and supports the Second Amendment, small government and lower taxes.

Hickman is endorsed by Kansans for Life.

“I kind of got caught up in the trap of just griping and complaining about political leaders and what happened in the whole political scene,” he said on the John Whitmer show. “And finally, I just had this strong sense that came to me one day and says, ‘Dave, either put up or shut up.’”

Hickman didn’t respond to The Beacon’s multiple requests for comment. His responses are pulled from his Facebook page, campaign website and an interview on the John Whitmer radio show.

Question 1: If elected, which of these politicians would you most closely resemble?

Options include: Joe Biden, Sharice Davids, Bob Dole, Nancy Kassebaum, Laura Kelly, Roger Marshall, Jerry Moran, Donald Trump or someone else.

Neither candidate responded to this question directly, but both candidates were asked about their support for former President Donald Trump. Both Hickman and Ward said they plan on voting for him in 2024.

Hickman: “I have voted for him in the past, I would vote for him in the future. There are some things I don’t like about the way he articulates stuff. But I certainly like most of his policies, and they’ve really been good for the American people,” he told Whitmer.

Ward: “I don’t think the American economy can stand any more of Joe Biden’s policy. So I will be voting for Trump in November,” she told Whitmer.

Question 2: If you could pass any bill, what would it be and why?

Hickman: Hickman’s website advocates for term limits, 10 years max. It also calls for removing two current laws/regulations for every new bill that is introduced and a fully closed southern border — an issue the state Legislature doesn’t control.

Ward: Ward helped pass Levi’s law, which increases the penalties for leaving the scene of a hit-and-run accident when the driver should reasonably assume someone could have died. The law is named after her 20-year-old son who died in a hit-and-run crash on Easter weekend 2022.

Question 3: How would you have voted on the following items? You can vote yes, no or pass.

The Aug. 2, 2022, constitutional amendment on abortion

Voting no meant the state constitution protects the right to abortion. Voting yes meant it could be regulated or banned.

Hickman: We should not delegate life-and-death issues to left-leaning government policy and law. I am pro-life and believe that life starts at conception. There are two extremes to this issue. Protect life at all costs regardless of how it was conceived or kill the child. If there is an error in either extreme, I choose life, not death. Which side do you choose?

Ward: I support pro-life, 100%. I’m endorsed by Kansans for Life.

Flat tax on income

Voting yes would approve a single-rate on income tax set at 5.25%. A single rate on income didn’t pass this year.

Hickman: Taxes are too high and too many. Property and food taxes should be eliminated for Kansans. A flat tax is the most equitable. Elected legislators should be held accountable for taxation policy and law.

Ward: I’m for any and all tax relief. It’s regrettable that the governor forced a plan into place that did very little for property taxes. So (the recently-passed tax cuts are) a start, but we have to get some serious help for property taxes.

Banning transgender women from women’s sports

Voting yes would mean athletes have to compete based on their gender assigned at birth. This bill was vetoed but overridden in 2023.

Hickman: Men and women are created differently. I would ban all transgender sports participation with genders not of their genetic and birth sex identification. I do not want my granddaughters competing against men.

Ward: I applaud (the Legislature) for banning biological men from women’s sports.

Banning gender-affirming care for trans youth

Voting yes means children under 18 can’t get puberty blockers, hormone treatment, and in rare cases, gender-reassignment surgery. The bill narrowly failed this year and is expected to come up again in 2025.

Hickman: I am a strong believer in parental rights and consent for their children. No surgery or drug-altering medications should be allowed without parental consent. Any doctor who surgically mutilates a child for transgender reassignment should lose their license to practice medicine in the state of Kansas.

Ward: I would have supported it. There’s one item left in the fight, and that’s to protect our kids and ban gender reassignment surgeries.

Chiefs and Royals stadium-financing bill

The bill didn’t spend any taxpayer money to attract the teams, but it did set aside future sales tax dollars from future stadium districts to pay off bonds. This law passed by a comfortable margin, and voting yes opens the door to the Chiefs and Royals in Kansas.

Hickman: There is a sense in which it would have been real good for our competitive nature. I’m a competitive person. And so, yeah, let’s go get the Chiefs and the Royals and bring them to Kansas. And part of the other good thing was that it would have created more jobs (and created) spinoff businesses that would have evolved around that. … But the STAR bonds seem to have a history that is a little bit skeptical. … On a 30-year bond, what happens during the last 20 years if the primary investors either drop out or something goes wrong? Then it’s left up to the taxpayer to pay for that.

Ward: I hope in the long run it works for the state. (STAR bonds are) confusing to people, but they’re truly a user-pay incentive program. It takes no money from the general fund. It doesn’t take any money from taxpayers. There’s no way that they’re on the hook for those bonds. If you don’t go to a game, you’re not paying. I’m a little bit more comfortable with using STAR bonds to lure the Chiefs and the Royals — hopefully get a Super Bowl game out of it (unlike) some of the other tax giveaways that have been done.

APEX (Attracting Powerful Economic Expansion)

The bill had billions in tax incentives to bring a Panasonic battery plant to De Soto, Kansas. As it was being passed, lawmakers were not told which company would be coming, but were told the bill is necessary to attract large businesses. Voting yes approved a massive tax incentive plan for companies.

Hickman: Hickman didn’t respond to requests for comment and his website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

Ward: Ward didn’t respond to requests for comment and her website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

Congressional redistricting

Kansas redrew its congressional maps with new census data. Voting yes approved the Republican maps. Those maps were controversial as Democrats say they are gerrymandered to dilute blue votes.

Hickman: Hickman didn’t respond to requests for comment and his website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

Ward: Ward didn’t respond to requests for comment and her website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

Mail ballot grace period

Currently, any mail ballot in Kansas can arrive three days after Election Day and still be counted if it was postmarked on or before Election Day. Voting yes would eliminate that grace period.

Hickman: Your vote is significant and meaningful. I support voter integrity through machine elimination and stronger mail-in ballot laws. I recommend photo ID.

Ward: Ward didn’t respond to requests for comment and her website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

A bill loosening child care regulations

It would expand allowed child-to-staff ratios and allow teenagers to work at these facilities. Voting yes approves the loosened restrictions. Learn more about the bill here.

Hickman: Hickman didn’t respond to requests for comment and his website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

Ward: Ward didn’t respond to requests for comment and her website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.

The Parents’ Bill of Rights

This bill lets parents pull their kids out of classes if they are being taught objectionable material. Republicans say it is up to parents to determine what their children should be learning. Democrats say this bill addresses a problem that doesn’t exist.

Hickman: Schools should not teach your children what values and cultural influences to embrace. A reevaluation of public education needs to be implemented. School systems should be teaching basic life learning skills, i.e. math, reading, science, computer technology and writing skills.

Ward: Ward didn’t respond to requests for comment and her website doesn’t mention any stance on this policy.