TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly refused to discuss allegations of a toxic work environment at the Kansas Democratic Party Thursday, a week after claims of bullying from former staffers became public.
Last week The Star reported that the state party had hired a Kansas City law firm to conduct an internal investigation into allegations against Ben Meers, the party’s executive director. Former employees told The Star they faced serious mental health ramifications as a result of what they described as erratic and verbally abusive treatment.
Two of those employees were told in an email from the party’s state chair that their allegations against Meers were partially corroborated by the internal investigation, but the party never released the report from the investigation or detailed the changes they made in response to it. Meers continues to run the day-to-day operations heading into the midterm elections.
Kelly, the state’s highest-ranking elected Democrat, punted Thursday when asked whether she was confident in Meers’ continued leadership of the party.
“That is not something that I involve myself in,” Kelly said. “The party has its own leadership and I’m going to let them deal with that and let them make that determination.”
Since The Star first reported on the allegations a fifth former staff member, Isidro Marino, said he left his job organizing for the party in Southwest Kansas due to long hours and harsh treatment from Meers.
“There was one moment when I didn’t complete an assignment the way he wanted to and he kind of raised his voice and screamed at me over the phone,” Marino said. “There were several moments of that occurring.”
Republicans hoping to remove Kelly from office immediately capitalized on her silence last week. Republican Governors Association spokeswoman Joanna Rodriguez released a statement hours after the story published saying Kelly “doesn’t want to answer for much these days.”
Rodriguez reiterated the criticism in a statement Thursday. “It’s pretty egregious Laura Kelly won’t even express concern or at a minimum say it is unacceptable for any employer — let alone her state party’s Executive Director — to abuse their employees to the point they check into a mental institution,” she said.
Typically, the sitting governor in Kansas is considered the de facto leader of the state party.
Kelly’s refusal to comment on party issues comes as she has seemed to distance herself from her party heading into a tough reelection fight. She angered Democrats in the past year with decisions to sign GOP-authored bills outlining exceptions to COVID-19 vaccine requirements and banning sanctuary cities.
Other reactions from Kansas Democrats
Like Kelly, most elected Democrats across Kansas have stayed largely silent in the face of the allegations against Meers. U.S. Rep Sharice Davids last week declined to comment on the allegations.
There have been a few exceptions.
Kansas House Minority Leader Tom Sawyer called for more transparency from the party.
“It takes a lot of courage to come forward in situations like this. The KDP needs to release the full list of workplace policy changes made after the investigation concluded. A culture of accountability and support is key to building up strength in the party,” Sawyer, a Wichita Democrat, said in a statement released the same day as Kelly’s comments.
State Rep. John Carmichael, a Wichita Democrat, told The Star he had not been involved in the state party in nine years but found the allegations “disturbing and concerning.”
“I am not a party to the decisions about what is done in response to that investigation but this is clearly something that should not be swept under the rug,” said Carmichael, the party’s former secretary.
Rabbi Moti Reiber, a prominent progressive activist and executive director of Kansas Interfaith Action, posted on Twitter that he had canceled his recurring donation to the party until it changes executive directors.
Tom Witt, executive director of Equality Kansas and former contractor for the party, told The Star he had seen Meers berate Alex Brase, one of the complainants, and had heard Meers complain about the staffer behind his back.
“I thought it was inappropriate,” he said.
According to statements from several party caucuses, the Kansas Democratic Party’s executive committee met last week and discussed the allegations. The meeting, however, was private.
Following the meeting some party caucuses put out statements calling for the allegations to be taken seriously but not advocating for any specific steps.
“It is disheartening to see that staff within the party have developed mental health issues due to their interactions with other party staff. As Democrats we should always strive to do better,” the Kansas Democratic Disability Caucus said.
The Kansas Democratic LGBTQ+ Caucus said they would “always work to create a better Democratic Party.”
The Kansas Young Democrats’ executive board said in its statement that they believed appropriate steps had been taken to ensure staff members would not be mistreated in the future.
“Our conversations with party leadership will continue in the coming weeks to guarantee current and future staffers will not have to worry about employment, or treatment generally, within the party,” the statement said.
