Cindy Holscher

Subnational level: Governor
Written By Alison Handel, SFGI Intern

Cindy Holscher is a state senator from Johnson County and a nominee for governor of Kansas in the 2026 election. A product of rural public schools and the first in her family to graduate from college (University of Missouri, journalism & political science), she worked as a Sprint executive before flipping a historically Republican House seat in 2016 and winning her Senate district in 2020. In the Legislature, she founded the bipartisan Women’s Caucus, helped restore school funding after the Brownback era, and advanced reforms on taxes, survivor protections, and public safety. As governor, Holscher pledges to lower costs for working families, invest in public education, protect Social Security/Medicare/Medicaid, legalize medical marijuana, and pause data center booms until strong guardrails protect communities. Elections will take place on Tuesday, November 3. 

Alison Handel, SFGI Intern

A Los Angeles-native, Alison moved to New York to attend NYU where she studied international development and documentary filmmaking. After graduating, she was awarded a Fulbright grant to research migration patterns during the Brazilian Belle Epoque in Manaus, Brazil. She is currently pursuing a dual Master's of International Affairs/Juris Doctor degree with the Colin Powell School and CUNY Law.

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