Kansas

Kansas politician Scott Schwab has cancer, will continue campaign for governor

Published

1 year ago

March 24, 2025

Kansas politician Scott Schwab has cancer, will continue campaign for governor

Kansas politician Scott Schwab announced a cancer diagnosis on Friday, but said it won’t keep him from continuing in his current job or from running for higher office.

“During a routine cancer screening in December doctors found that I have a lung nodule that is cancerous, and I will be undergoing surgery next week to have it removed,” Schwab, the secretary of state, said in a social media post Friday afternoon. “It has not spread or changed.

“My doctors have confirmed it was found very early, and no further treatment will be required post-surgery. I will make a full recovery. While I will take some time to recover, I remain committed to serving Kansans as Secretary of State and returning to the campaign trail as I continue my run for governor.”

Schwab, a Republican, is running for governor in 2026. He was elected secretary of state in 2018 and reelected in 2022 after serving in the Legislature, representing an Olathe district.

He is the biggest name so far to declare for the 2026 gubernatorial race, though more candidate announcements are expected next month after the legislative session ends.

Politicians, government officials have shared cancer diagnoses in recent years

Schwab joins a list of Kansas politicians and government officials who have publicly shared cancer diagnoses in recent years, often while continuing to serve.

In 2021, Jeff Colyer dropped out of the 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary race and endorsed Derek Schmidt after a prostate cancer diagnosis.

In 2023, Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt announced a breast cancer diagnosis. The Topeka Republican continued serving in her elected office while being treated. Schmidt shared that she was cancer-free later the same year.

Also in 2023, Kansas State University president Richard Linton shared that he had been diagnosed with throat and tongue cancer. Around the same time, Kansas Board of Regents member and then-chair Jon Rolph was also diagnosed with cancer.

Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.

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Kansas

Kansas man sentenced to 4 years in connection with 13-year-old Linn County boy’s death

Published

9 hours ago

May 29, 2026

Press Room

Kansas man sentenced to 4 years in connection with 13-year-old Linn County boy’s death

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Bates County Circuit Court judge Friday sentenced a Linn County, Kansas, man in connection with the December 2025 death of Airen Andula, 13.

Damon Leonard, 47, was sentenced to four years in prison for abandonment of a corpse, according to court records.

He pleaded guilty to the charge of abandoning a corpse on May 22.

Andula disappeared from his Pleasanton, Kansas, home on Dec. 21, 2025. A day later, law enforcement found the boy’s body in a ravine in Bates County, Missouri. He had died from multiple dog bite injuries.

Police were led to the boy’s body after a phone call from Leonard.

Court documents said Leonard “admitted that he transported the deceased child from Kansas to Missouri and left the body in the bottom of the creek” before he returned home.

KSHB 41 reporter Fernanda Silva spoke with Andula’s family earlier this week — after the guilty plea and ahead of Friday’s sentencing.

His family shared that the guilty plea brought a small sense of justice, but it didn’t do much to ease the pain of their loss.

READ MORE | Family of Airen Andula speaks out ahead of sentencing

“We’re missing our kid every day of our lives,” the boy’s father Charles Andula told Silva.

Leonard received credit for time served of 158 days in his sentence, per court records.

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Kansas

Gas, diesel fuel prices down over past week across nation, Kansas

Published

21 hours ago

May 29, 2026

Press Room

Gas, diesel fuel prices down over past week across nation, Kansas

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – It may not seem like a lot of relief, but gas and diesel prices have declined over the past week.

Friday morning’s national average for a gallon of unleaded gas was $4.39, according to the Automobile Association of America.

That’s down three cents from $4.42 on Thursday; down 16 cents from a week ago; but was up 17 cents from $4.22 a month ago and up $.23 from $3.16 a year ago.

Gas and diesel fuel prices are down this week in Kansas and across the nation, according to the American Automobile Association.(KALB)

In Kansas, AAA says, unleaded gas on Friday was averaging $3.96 a gallon — down four cents from $4.00 on Thursday; down 13 cents from $3.96 a week ago; but up 26 cents from $3.70 a month ago; and up $1.07 over $2.89 a year ago.

Diesel fuel also was dropping in price. AAA says Friday’s national average for a gallon of diesel was $5.52 a gallon — down three cents from $5.55 on Thursday; down 12 cents from $5.64 a week a go; but up six cents from $5.46 a month ago and up $1.98 from $3.54 a year ago.

Kansas diesel fuel prices, according to AAA, checked in at an average of $4.98 on Friday. That’s five cents below $5.03 on Thursday; down 16 cents from $5.14 a week ago; but up 24 cents over $4.74 a month ago; and up $1.72 from $3.26 a year ago.

In Topeka, GasBuddy.com on Friday morning showed unleaded gas prices ranging between $3.77 and $4.09 in Topeka, with diesel fuel going for between $4.94 and $5.29 a gallon.

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