Kansas Democrat Megan Phillips is calling for changes to immigration enforcement as she challenges Kansas House Majority Leader Chris Croft, putting residents’ rights and school funding before voters in a Johnson County district.
The Kansas secretary of state’s primary results list Phillips as the Democratic nominee and Croft as the Republican nominee for House District 8. A Kansas Legislative Research Department profile counted 3,105 Asian residents there in the 2020 census, or 13.3% of the district’s 23,313 residents. The count does not indicate how residents will vote.
Phillips told Hindustan Times in an interview published Oct. 21 that she would seek immigration enforcement changes and work with local governments to protect residents’ legal rights. The outlet reported that she accused U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of pursuing a racist agenda. Describing the prospect of indefinite detention without due process, Phillips said, “That is inhumane.”
Of the reports sent to Stop AAPI Hate about anti-Asian acts, the share involving hostility toward immigrants rose from 42% in 2023 to 62% during the first six months of 2026, the group said. Those submissions do not measure conditions in District 8.
Separately, a federal immigration operation in southwest Kansas resulted in 104 arrests from Sept. 22-24, the U.S. attorney’s office said. U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser rejected claims that the operation targeted people by race. It took place outside Phillips’ Johnson County district.
Education is another campaign issue. Phillips calls for full state funding of special education and more mental health services. Croft’s campaign says it supports fully funding public schools, with an emphasis on classroom results.
Minutes of the Kansas State Department of Education’s Special Education Advisory Council list $611.2 million appropriated for special education aid in 2025-26. They estimate that the amount would cover 67.2% of qualifying excess costs. State law sets a 92% rate, subject to appropriations, and the council estimated that reaching it would require another $226 million. School districts cover costs that state aid does not reimburse from other funds.
In-person advance voting must be underway in every Kansas county by Oct. 27. The general election is Nov. 3.
