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KS High Court to Hear US Senate Ballot Dispute

The battle over the ballot in the Kansas Senate race continues. Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor, the Democratic nominee, is trying to keep his name off the ballot this November.

Secretary of State Kris Kobach is trying to keep his name on. And now, the Kansas Supreme Court will decide. J. Schafer has more.

Next week, the Kansas Supreme Court will hold a hearing on a petition by Chad Taylor to get his name removed from the ballot. The court has scheduled arguments for 9am Tuesday.

Chief Justice Lawton Nuss says the court will hear the case without a review by a lower court because of the need for an authoritative ruling.

Taylor dropped out of the Senate race last week - or at least tried to drop out. But Republican Secretary of State Kris Kobach said Taylor didn't comply with the law in doing so.

Taylor disputes that claim. Taylor's withdrawal could boost the chances of independent candidate Greg Orman in his effort to defeat three-term GOP Senator Pat Roberts.

J. Schafer is the News Director of Kansas Public Radio at the Univeristy of Kansas. He’s also the Managing Editor of the Kansas Public Radio Network, which provides news and information to other public radio stations in Kansas and Missouri. Before joining KPR in 1995, Schafer spent 10 years as a commercial radio and TV newsman. During his career, he's filed stories for nearly every major radio news network in the nation including ABC, NBC, CBS, AP, UPI, the Mutual Broadcasting System, NPR and the BBC. This seems to impress no one. At KPR, he produces feature stories, interviews and newscast items and edits the work of others. In the fall of 2000, he performed contract work for the U.S. State Department, traveling to central Asia to teach broadcast journalism at newly independent radio stations in the former Soviet Union. One of his passions is Kansas; learning about and promoting the state’s rich heritage, people and accomplishments. Schafer gives presentations about Kansas to various organizations around the state to remind residents about our awesome history and incredible people. A native of Great Bend, he studied journalism and mass communications at Barton County Community College and at the University of Kansas. He was also an exchange student to Villingen-Schwenningen, Germany. The “J.” in J. Schafer stands for Jeremy, but he doesn’t really care for that name. He also enjoys the pretentiousness of using just a single initial for a first name!