Party chairman Lee Kinch announced Monday he wouldn’t seek re-election to the post, paving the way for Saturday’s leadership election. In a letter to Democrats, he cited concerns expressed by young Democrats about the “aging leaders and the need for a new face for our party.” He said he took those concerns seriously.

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, said Kinch had taken the party from the verge of financial insolvency to a well-funded status in 15 months. Kinch was elected chairman after the resignation of Larry Meeker, who had argued the party needed to brand itself as more conservative than some Democrats nationally.

“He also had the wisdom to recognize a new day is coming in Kansas, that progressive Democrats, a younger generation than both Mr. Kinch and myself, are the future of the party,” Carmichael said. “And he was wise to use good discretion and allow the party to move in a younger and perhaps more progressive manner.”

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