Former Kansas Republican Gov. Bill Graves is backing Democrat Adam Hamilton in his bid to unseat Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS), crossing party lines to endorse the pastor.
“For the last six years, Senator Roger Marshall has turned his back on Kansas,” Graves said in a video shared by Hamilton on X. “In contrast, Adam Hamilton stands as a bulwark of kindness, humility and service to others.”
Graves, who served as governor from 1995 to 2003 after eight years as Kansas secretary of state, said growing partisan division in Washington makes it “time Kansas does something different” and called on voters to elect Hamilton.
The endorsement is not Graves’s first time backing a Democrat for office. He endorsed Gov. Laura Kelly (D-KS) in her 2018 and 2022 campaigns, both of which she won.
Hamilton, a fifth-generation Kansan and senior pastor of the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection, defeated 10 other Democrats in the August primary. Hamilton also outraised Marshall $3.7 million to $610,000 in the most recent quarter, although Marshall entered the general election with more cash on hand.
Marshall won the Republican primary with roughly 79% of the vote and is seeking a second term. He has built a record as a close ally of President Donald Trump and will face Hamilton in the Nov. 3 general election.
The race has drawn national attention since Hamilton’s primary victory. Sabato’s Crystal Ball and the Cook Political Report moved the contest from their previous “safe” or “solid” Republican ratings to “likely Republican,” but they both continue to characterize a Democratic victory as a long shot.
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Democratic leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairwoman Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), embraced Hamilton after his primary victory, casting him as a candidate who could bring a different approach to Washington.
Kansas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932, while Democrats have won several recent gubernatorial elections in the state. The 2026 contest therefore puts Hamilton’s campaign against Marshall’s reelection bid in a state with a long history of Republican dominance in Senate elections.