A New Face for the Kansas GOP

"Though a Republican, I shall never be completely partisan in my thinking." - Newly-elected Congressman Bob Dole to a Vesper constituent, March 1961

In 1961, Kansas' favorite son, President Dwight D. Eisenhower concluded his second term, and another ambitious Kansan stepped onto the national stage.

Bob Dole, who would become a favorite son for many, was elected to represent Kansas' Sixth Congressional District, which encompassed 26 counties in northwest and northcentral Kansas, for two years.

In 1962, he was re-elected to represent the First Congressional District, or the "Big First," which consolidated the two districts previously designated as Sixth and Fifth.

For the next six years, until his successful election to the U.S. Senate, Dole represented over 50% of the state's counties: 58 out of 105.