Kansas Democratic gubernatorial nominee Cindy Holscher is facing renewed Republican criticism over a 2023 social media exchange in which she said she had “no idea if Jesus was trans, gay, straight, etc.,” adding a cultural flashpoint to a governor’s race already rated as leaning Republican.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Kansas Democratic gubernatorial nominee Cindy Holscher is facing renewed scrutiny over comments she made three years ago about Jesus Christ as Republicans seek to turn the resurfaced remarks into an issue in the state’s competitive race for governor.
Holscher, a state senator, made the comments in March 2023 during a political dispute over proposed Kansas legislation addressing certain drag performances in front of minors.
The exchange resurfaced after Holscher won the Democratic nomination last week, defeating fellow state Sen. Ethan Corson and Overland Park Mayor Curt Skoog.
During a March 7, 2023, exchange on X, another user asked Holscher whether she was suggesting Jesus was transgender.
“I have no idea if Jesus was trans, gay, straight, etc.,” Holscher responded, according to a screenshot published by the Washington Examiner.
Holscher went on to accuse the other user of suggesting that a sacred figure would somehow be diminished by not being heterosexual. She also challenged the person to provide evidence supporting claims that schools were grooming children.
The online dispute came while Kansas lawmakers were considering Senate Bill 149.
The legislation would have broadened the state’s crime of promoting obscenity to minors to include certain drag performances. Under the proposal, a first violation would have constituted a Class A misdemeanor, while a subsequent offense could have resulted in a felony charge.
Republican state Sen. Mike Thompson introduced the measure. It was referred to the Kansas Senate Judiciary Committee but ultimately died there in 2024.
The resurfaced remarks are now being used by Republican gubernatorial nominee Ty Masterson, the Kansas Senate president, to draw a sharper cultural distinction between himself and Holscher ahead of the general election.
“She mocked Jesus Christ to defend drag shows for kids, and she’s never apologized,” Masterson said in a statement to the Washington Examiner, while describing Holscher as the most radical liberal gubernatorial nominee in Kansas history.
Holscher’s campaign rejected that characterization and accused Masterson of focusing on years-old social media posts rather than issues affecting Kansas households.
Her campaign told the Examiner that Kansans are confronting sharply rising household expenses and property taxes while Masterson remains focused on the old exchange.
The dispute arrives as Holscher begins a general election campaign in a state where Republicans hold a substantial voter-registration advantage.
The Cook Political Report currently rates the Kansas governor’s race Lean Republican.
Holscher’s path to the nomination also produced an intraparty upset.
Outgoing Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly had endorsed Corson in the Democratic primary, making Holscher’s victory a setback for the state party’s establishment wing.
Republicans are now seeking to use Holscher’s 2023 comments as another line of attack on cultural and transgender-related issues, a strategy that has appeared in other major races around the country.
A similar controversy has emerged in Texas involving Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico.
Talarico drew Republican criticism over a 2021 statement on the Texas House floor in which he said “God is nonbinary” during debate over legislation concerning transgender participation in youth sports, according to the Texas Tribune.
Talarico later addressed the remark following his primary victory.
In an interview with The New York Times, he said there are views he would communicate differently today while maintaining the principle behind his original statement.
His intended point, Talarico said, was that “God is beyond gender.”
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s campaign has repeatedly highlighted Talarico’s original “God is nonbinary” comment.
The Kansas and Texas disputes come after Republicans made transgender-related policies a prominent part of their 2024 campaign messaging.
President Donald Trump’s campaign repeatedly targeted then-Vice President Kamala Harris through its “Kamala is for they/them” advertisements, contrasting Democratic positions on transgender issues with Trump’s agenda.
The Democratic National Committee’s subsequent review of the 2024 election identified that line of attack as one of the campaign cycle’s most effective.
Kansas Republicans are now attempting to create a similar contrast using Holscher’s own words as she competes against Masterson for the governor’s office.
For Holscher, the resurfaced exchange adds another national culture-war issue to a race in which she is already attempting to overcome the state’s Republican registration advantage and a political environment currently assessed as favoring the GOP nominee.
Original article
Comments