Democrat Amy Diediker takes the open Kansas State Board of Education seat for District 3, with nearly 55% of the vote.
She beat out Republican Jim McMullen for the seat, which flips to the Democrats with Diediker’s election. Four other seats on the board were up for grabs this year, all filled by Republicans.
“This first year, three of my main priorities will be bringing the local voice to the state board — making sure that the community, administrators and educators feel like they have a voice on the state board,” Diediker said. “Secondly, our state has already done [work] for improving reading scores; [I want to] continue that work and make sure we have good reading scores at the middle and high school levels as well.
“And [lastly, I want to] continue strengthening our CTE (Career and Technical Education) programs,” she added.
Diediker won with 74,482 combined votes in Johnson and Miami counties, according to the unofficial results. With McMullen earning only 60,588 votes (45%), Diediker won by a roughly 13,000-vote difference.
“I feel fine,” McMullen said. “I do this to promote these ideas. That’s why I do it. I’ll continue to promote my ideas, especially as long as the mainline education establishment promotes their ideas, which are not what I think is best for young people. …
“It’s like in business; you’re always advancing or you’re always falling back,” he added. “You can’t ever stay static. Push forward. Keep fighting for what you think is right.”
The District 3 seat covers southern Johnson County and northern Miami County, representing the Blue Valley, Gardner Edgerton, Olathe and Spring Hill school districts in Johnson County.
Republican Michelle Dombrowsky, who currently represents District 3, is vacating the position after she campaigned as the lieutenant governor for GOP gubernatorial candidate Charlotte O’Hara.
Diediker emerges as the lone Democrat elected to the five open seats on the state board. Once the newly elected officials take their seats, the board will have a 6-4 member split with a Republican majority.
The 10-member board oversees public K-12 education in the state. Specific duties include setting education policy for elementary and secondary schools, establishing academic standards, overseeing educator licensure and instituting a statewide accreditation system.
The board also appoints a statewide education commissioner, which is currently held by Commissioner Jake Steel.
This is Diediker’s first time holding elected office, but she’s no stranger to education — she previously taught as an elementary music teacher in Junction City and De Soto. Diediker, of Olathe, is also a mother of three. Her youngest daughter was diagnosed with a rare disease at age 4 and has a 504 special education plan for complex medical needs.
McMullen, of Overland Park, is a former member of the Blue Valley school board, serving from 2021 to 2025. During that time, the board voted to remove him in 2022 as vice president over now-deleted social media posts about transgender issues. McMullen stood by those posts and has said he believes “gender ideology” harms children. He lost a reelection bid for the seat last year. He also served on the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce.
In the August Republican primary, McMullen defeated former state board member Steve Roberts.
Patty Logan, chair of Stand Up Blue Valley, a pro-public education advocacy group centered in southern Johnson County, shared a statement with the Post on behalf of the organization’s leadership after results came in Tuesday night.
“We are gratified that State Board of Education District 3 voters decisively elected the most qualified and pro-public education candidate to the State Board, and at the same time sent a strong message that outside influences in our elections are unwelcome,” Logan said.
“In spite of likely over $200,000 spent by a New York-based group to influence this election, voters rejected the anti-student, anti-educator negativity that was brought to the Blue Valley School Board by Jim McMullen during his one term,” Logan added. “Voters realized McMullen should not be making decisions for Kansas students, educators, or schools.”
Diediker will take the seat in January.
This story was originally published by the Johnson County Post.
