some things to some people
No, there ought not be this law — all things wrong with it on a small “d” democracy level, but I do wonder, wish I could snap my fingers and create an alternate universe for comparisons’ sake and see how yesterday’s Kansas election plays out —
— in a world where you are required to run the same ads statewide.
If you lived in any city in Kansas — the media markets of Topeka, Witchita, and Kansas City, the “Kansans for Constitutional Freedom” ads — urging the “no” vote — stressed Abortion rights being protected. Out in the hinterlands, the ads talked about everything other than Abortion, down to the horror of a “constitutional amendment”, benign or shattering the same matter. If there was some code word done to mention “abortion”, it may as well be confidante with anti covid mask rhetoric.
This happens a lot. Get the regional base out in one, find a Lowest common denominator to spring added votes in the other. The thing which would be interesting if today we could get the double messaging still working in the celebratory victory parade — instead of just Sebelius declaring “they voted Hell No!” in the face of Cavanaugh and company’s overturning Roe v Wade , someone has to maintain the point — ” Kansas voted overwhelmingly against more state constitutional amendments!”