How to Run for City Council in Kansas

Kansas cities elect their council members in 2027. To run, you file by noon on Tuesday, June 1, 2027, either with a declaration of candidacy and a $20 filing fee, or with a petition signed by voters instead of the fee. Candidates for a district seat in a first or second class city file with the city clerk. Candidates for an at-large seat file with the county election officer. A primary is held on Tuesday, August 3, 2027 only if more than three candidates file for a district seat, or more than three times as many candidates as seats file in an at-large race. Otherwise, every candidate goes straight to the general election on Tuesday, November 2, 2027.

Each Kansas city's class, form of government and charter ordinances shape who can run, how the council is elected and how long the terms are. This guide covers the steps state law sets for every city, using the Kansas Statutes (K.S.A.) and the Secretary of State's election standards and forms, and lists the questions to take to your city clerk. The 2027 voter dates are computed from state law, because the Secretary of State has not yet posted its 2027 calendar.

For the full picture of a 2027 Kansas race, including school boards and community colleges, see our guide to running for local office in Kansas.

Step 1: Learn how your council is elected

The Secretary of State's election standards name three things that shape every city election: the class of the city (first, second or third, depending on population), its form of government, and its election schedule. Each city adopts its form of government by charter ordinance. Mayor-council, modified mayor-council, commission and city manager are among the forms named.

Before you choose a seat, ask your city clerk these questions:

• Which seats are on the 2027 ballot? Kansas holds city elections in odd-numbered years, but state law lets cities hold elections in even-numbered years to stagger terms or create three-year terms (K.S.A. 25-21a01(h)), and some cities have set other schedules by charter ordinance.
• Is the seat elected by district or at large? A district seat is chosen by the voters of one part of the city, and an at-large seat by the whole city. The answer changes where you file and how many signatures a petition needs.
• Which district do you live in?
• How long is the term, and when does it begin? Each city's governing body sets the terms of its elected officials by ordinance or resolution (K.S.A. 25-21a01(c)).
• Are city elections partisan or nonpartisan? City elections are usually nonpartisan, but state law lets each city's governing body decide (K.S.A. 25-2113).

Step 2: Check that you qualify

Kansas has no single list of qualifications for every city council. According to the Secretary of State's election standards, most first class cities have used their home rule power to set their own candidate qualifications, and second and third class cities may change the statutory qualifications by charter ordinance.

Ask your city clerk what residency and voter registration requirements apply to the seat, and when they must be met. Then make sure your voter registration shows your current address in the district, through the Secretary of State's website or your county election office. Within three days after you file, the county election officer decides whether your filing is valid, and that review can include whether you have the qualifications for the office.

Step 3: Choose the fee or the petition

The $20 fee. State law lets any person who meets the qualifications for a municipal office become a candidate by filing a declaration of intent with a $20 filing fee (K.S.A. 25-21a01(f)). An older statute still prints different amounts for some council districts, so confirm the fee with your county election officer. The declaration form comes from the county election officer.

The petition. A petition replaces the fee. For a district seat, the number of signatures depends on the city's population (K.S.A. 25-2110a):

For an at-large seat, the number is set by the city governing body by ordinance (K.S.A. 25-2110(b)). Ask your county election officer for the exact number that applies to your seat in 2027.

If you choose the petition, these rules apply:

• Use Form CP, the Kansas Non-Partisan City/School Nomination Petition. Fill in your name, address and the office before anyone signs. You may photocopy the blank form.
• Signers must be registered voters who live in your district (or in the city, for an at-large seat). Each gives a signature, printed name, street address, city and the date.
• Circulators, the people who collect the signatures, must be U.S. citizens, at least 18, and not convicted of a felony unless pardoned or with civil rights restored (K.S.A. 25-3608). You may circulate your own petition. Each circulator must personally witness every signature, keep each page to signers from one county, and sign a notarized affidavit on the back of the form.
• The 180-day rule. A petition is void unless it is filed within 180 days of its first signature (K.S.A. 25-3602(d)). For a June 1, 2027 filing, collect no signatures before Thursday, December 3, 2026 (based on state law).
• Collect extra. The Secretary of State recommends gathering more signatures than required, because some will not be found valid. A petition that falls short cannot be topped up later, and circulation must start over.

Step 4: File by noon on Tuesday, June 1, 2027

The filing deadline for all city elections is noon on June 1 (K.S.A. 25-2109). Where you file depends on your seat:

1. District seat in a first or second class city: file your statement of candidacy, with the fee or the petition, with the city clerk. The clerk records it and sends it to the county election officer within three business days.
2. District seat in a third class city: file with the county election officer or the city clerk.
3. At-large seat: file with the county election officer of the county that holds most of the city's population.

Ask when the office begins accepting filings, and file early. If your filing is found invalid, you will be told why and may object. Objection deadlines are short, so ask the county election officer for them and keep copies of everything you file.

Withdrawals. After noon on June 1, a candidate may not withdraw, with two exceptions added by a 2026 change to state law: a severe medical hardship on the candidate or their immediate family, certified by a physician, or no longer living in the district. A certification received by Wednesday, September 1, 2027 keeps the name off the ballot.

Write-ins. General election ballots have write-in lines. In a first class city, a write-in candidate must file an affidavit of write-in candidacy before their votes are counted.

Step 5: Run the council campaign

After June 1, you will learn whether your race has a primary. In a district race with four or more candidates, the top two in the August 3 primary advance to November.

The voter dates that matter most are the registration deadlines, Tuesday, July 13 for the primary and Tuesday, October 12 for the general election, and the start of advance voting on Wednesday, July 14 and Wednesday, October 13 (all based on state law). Every county must offer in-person advance voting from the Tuesday before each election until noon the day before. Our Kansas 2027 local election calendar lists each date.

For a district seat, much of the work is meeting voters at their doors. Ask your county election officer how to obtain a list of registered voters in your district. As an example only: if you and two volunteers each knock on 60 doors a week for ten weeks, the three of you would reach about 1,800 doors before advance voting begins. Set your own numbers from the size of your district and the time you have.

For an at-large seat, you are campaigning citywide, so plan for more volunteers and events.

Step 6: Keep supporters informed by text

A short text at the right moment tells supporters when and where to vote. Set it up in CampaignCNX+ before advance voting begins.

1. Settle your committee first. Texting from a registered number for a campaign requires Campaign Verify, a check that confirms to the carriers (the mobile phone companies) that you are a real campaign. It needs a 527 committee (the federal tax status of a political committee) with an EIN (the committee's federal tax ID number) and a filing with an election authority that is published online. Ask your county election officer whether your committee's filing is posted online, and ask Campaign Verify Support if it is not. A $95 request made on or after Sunday, November 15, 2026 lasts until January 31, 2029. Campaign Verify decides eligibility.
2. Open your account. CampaignCNX+ files your carrier registration for you, as 10DLC (the registration for texting from a standard local-style number) or as toll-free, and files your Campaign Verify token with it.
3. Add only supporters who agreed in writing. Use a sign-up sheet that plainly says the person agrees to receive campaign texts, and record the date. Your petition is not a texting list, because Form CP says nothing about texts. In CampaignCNX+, put supporters in a group and record the consent date and source in a custom field.
4. Schedule a reminder for advance voting. Use the first-name merge field so each text is addressed to the person, and end the first message with the opt-out line:

Hi [First name], this is [Name], candidate for [City] Council. Advance voting is open at the county election office. Reply STOP to opt out.

Texts send only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the recipient's time zone, and STOP replies are handled automatically. 100 free SMS included. Your number is $5 a month. For more wording, see our campaign text templates for local races, and for texting rules across the region, see campaign texting in the Midwest.

Settle your seat and route before spring

Ask your city clerk about your seat, district and qualifications this winter, decide between the fee and the petition, and file well before noon on June 1. When you are ready to keep supporters informed by text, start a CampaignCNX+ trial.