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Kansas, State House, District 79

Kansas House of Representatives District 79
Current incumbentCheryl Helmer Republican Party

Kansas' seventy-ninth state house district is represented by Republican Representative Cheryl Helmer.

Kansas state representatives represent an average of 22,825 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 21,507 residents.

About the chamber

Members of the Kansas House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Kansas legislators assume office the second Monday of January after their election.

Qualifications

Section 4 of Article 2 of the Kansas Constitution states, "During the time that any person is a candidate for nomination or election to the legislature and during the term of each legislator, such candidate or legislator shall be and remain a qualified elector who resides in his or her district."

Salaries

State legislators
SalaryPer diem
$88.66/day$144/day

Pension

As of 2011, when pensions are calculated for Kansas legislators, their normal annual salary is inflated by nearly $78,000. This is composed of $32,982, which comes from multiplying their daily salary by 372 (the number of days they would work if in session every day and if every month had 31 days), $45,756 from adding in their daily per diem (also based on 372 days) and $7,083 from expense payments. According to former state Senator Steve Morris, this is intended as compensation because of low legislative salaries which are seen as difficult to raise.

Vacancies

The Governor is responsible for filling all vacancies in the house.

The political party committee that last held the vacant seat must call for a convention within 21 days of the vacancy. The convention is designed to select the Governor's appointee and involves all the committeemen and committeewomen that represent the vacant house district.

The committeemen and committeewomen present for voting must approve a replacement on a simple majority vote. Once the vote has been conducted, the party committee must send the paperwork certifying the selection to the Governor within 24 hours or the next business day. The Governor has seven days after receiving the paperwork to act on the appointment.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of Kansas House of Representatives will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for August 4, 2020. The filing deadline is June 1, 2020.

2018

General election
General election for Kansas House of Representatives District 79

Cheryl Helmer (R) defeated incumbent Ed Trimmer (D) in the general election for Kansas House of Representatives District 79 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Cheryl Helmer (R)
50.8
3,683

Ed Trimmer (D)
49.2
3,570

Total votes: 7,253
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Kansas House of Representatives District 79

Incumbent Ed Trimmer advanced from the Democratic primary for Kansas House of Representatives District 79 on August 7, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Ed Trimmer (D)
100
922

Total votes: 922
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Kansas House of Representatives District 79

Cheryl Helmer advanced from the Republican primary for Kansas House of Representatives District 79 on August 7, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Cheryl Helmer (R)
100
2,007

Total votes: 2,007

2016

Elections for the Kansas House of Representatives were held in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 1, 2016.

Incumbent Ed Trimmer ran unopposed in the Kansas House of Representatives District 79 general election.

Kansas House of Representatives, District 79 General Election, 2016

Party Candidate
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Ed Trimmer Incumbent (unopposed)
Source: Kansas Secretary of State

Incumbent Ed Trimmer ran unopposed in the Kansas House of Representatives District 79 Democratic primary.

Kansas House of Representatives, District 79 Democratic Primary, 2016

Party Candidate
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Ed Trimmer Incumbent (unopposed)


2014

Elections for the Kansas House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 5, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 2, 2014. Incumbent Ed Trimmer was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Larry Alley was unopposed in the Republican primary. Initially, Alley was deemed the victor based on unofficial results. However, official election results found Trimmer defeating Alley by 17 votes.

Kansas House of Representatives District 79, General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngEd Trimmer Incumbent 50.1% 3,341
Republican Larry Alley 49.9% 3,324
Total Votes 6,665

2012

Elections for the office of Kansas House of Representatives consisted of a primary election on August 7, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature-filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 11, 2012. Incumbent Ed Trimmer (D) defeated Larry Alley (R) in the general election. Neither candidate faced opposition in their primary.

Kansas House of Representatives, District 79, General Election, 2012

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngEd Trimmer Incumbent 50.4% 4,234
Republican Larry Alley 49.6% 4,169
Total Votes 8,403

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2016, candidates for Kansas House of Representatives District 79 raised a total of $346,471. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $19,248 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Kansas House of Representatives District 79

Year Amount Candidates Average
2016 $36,203 1 $36,203
2014 $87,205 2 $43,603
2012 $58,694 3 $19,565
2010 $13,714 1 $13,714
2008 $66,242 2 $33,121
2006 $18,537 1 $18,537
2004 $41,112 5 $8,222
2002 $7,443 1 $7,443
2000 $17,321 2 $8,661
Total $346,471 18 $19,248