Kansas to hold first presidential primary in three decades. Here’s how you can vote early

Lindsay Smith
·4 min read

In a little more than two weeks, Kansas voters will show up to the polls for the state’s first presidential primary in 31 years.

Advance voting for the election officially kicked off Feb. 28, and it begins at the Sedgwick County Election Office Monday, March 4. The county’s 18 early voting satellite locations will be open starting Tuesday, March 12.

Anyone registered with a party in Sedgwick County can vote in-person at any of the county’s early voting locations.

You can vote at the county election office from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to noon on the last day of early voting, Monday, March 18. The satellite polling places will be open March 12 through Friday, March 15 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday, March 16 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Advance voting ends in Kansas at noon March 18, ahead of the Tuesday, March 19 presidential preference primary.

You must bring photo identification to your polling site.

Unaffiliated Kansas voters can participate in this election as long as they declare a party on Election Day. Additionally, Feb. 20 was the deadline to register to vote in time for the primary, as well as to request a mail-in ballot.

Where can I vote early in the primary in Sedgwick County?

Sedgwick County’s early voting satellite locations, open March 12-16, are:

  • Bel Aire City Building, 7651 E. Central Park, Bel Aire, KS

  • Eastminster Presbyterian Church, 1958 N. Webb Road, Wichita, KS

  • Evangel Presbyterian Church, 1545 S. 135th St. W., Wichita, KS

  • Goddard District Conference Center, 315 S. Main St., Goddard, KS

  • Grace Presbyterian Church, 5002 E. Douglas Ave., Wichita, KS

  • Haysville Community Library, 210 Hays Ave., Haysville, KS

  • Mt. Vernon Methodist Church, 5701 E. Mt. Vernon St., Wichita, KS

  • Northside Church of Christ, 4545 N. Meridian, Wichita, KS

  • Park City City Hall, 1941 E. 61st St. N., Park City, KS

  • Progressive Missionary Baptist Church, 2727 E. 25th St. N., Wichita, KS

  • Reformation Lutheran, 7601 E. 13th St. N., Wichita, KS

  • Sedgwick County Extension Office, 7001 W. 21st St. N., Wichita, KS

  • St. Andrew’s Lutheran, 2555 Hyacinth Lane, Wichita, KS

  • Urban League, 2418 E. 9th St. N., Wichita, KS

  • Valley Center Community Center, 314 E. Clay St., Valley Center, KS

  • Westlink Church of Christ, 10025 W. Central Ave., Wichita, KS

  • Woodland Lakes Community Church, 770 S. Greenwich Road, Wichita, KS

  • Woodlawn United Methodist Church, 431 S. Woodlawn Blvd., Derby, KS

What’s the difference between a caucus and a primary?

Kansas has only had a presidential primary in 1980 and 1992, but the process was revived for this year through state legislation.

Gov. Laura Kelly signed a bill into law that put the primaries in place for Republican, Democratic and Libertarian parties. The bipartisan measure, House Bill 2053, only scheduled the 2024 primary, however, and did not expand it to future election years.

Kansas typically holds caucuses, which are less costly but result in lower participation.

A caucus is when the political parties hold separate meetings to decide how many delegates are given to each candidate, which depends on the number of caucus votes received. A presidential primary, on the other hand, is when balloting is conducted by the state, through an election process.

March’s primary will be a preference primary.

“It is a ‘preference’ primary because it is an election where the vote totals are given to a political party to allocate delegates to candidates at the national convention. This is not a primary where the voters selected the party candidate,” the secretary of state’s website reads.

Who will be on the March 19 ballot in Kansas?

The March ballot will be different depending on your party registration.

For Democrats, incumbent President Joe Biden and candidates Marianne Williamson, Jason Michael Palmer and Dean Phillips will appear on the ballot. For Republicans, former President Donald Trump and candidates Nikki Haley, Ryan Binkley and Ron DeSantis will be on the ballot.

Ron DeSantis has officially dropped out of the 2024 presidential race, but will still appear on the ballot due to filing deadlines.

To see your sample ballot and polling location, visit the Kansas secretary of state’s voter registration lookup and enter your first and last name and date of birth.