Republican candidates for the Kansas House, Tony Barton (41st District) and incumbent Connie O’Brien (42nd District) touted Gov. Sam Brownback’s economic work and the Republican standard in general. O’Brien’s challenger, Austin Harris, a Tonganoxie Democrat attending Washburn University, voiced concern with Republican leadership at most turns.

Ernest Evans, political science professor at Kansas City Kansas Community College, served as moderator for the forum, which about 70 people attended.

After the forum, Evans said it was one of the more well-attended debates he has moderated.

Barton’s opponent, Democrat Nancy Bauder, did not attend. Barton and Bauder are vying for the seat Rep. Melanie Meier had held. A lieutenant colonel in the Kansas National Guard, Meier opted not to run for re-election because of pending deployment to Kosovo.

Each candidate had a time to give opening statements about their campaigns before Evans rattled off questions voters submitted in advance. Candidates also fielded questions from the audience.

On the economy, O’Brien and Barton spoke of the state enjoying a surplus, something Harris said would be short-lived. The Democratic challenger repeatedly criticized Brownback’s new tax codes, noting that many economists say it’s a plan that won’t pan out.

With regards to education, Harris blasted the recent history of state funding levels for schools, as well as higher tuition.

Barton countered, saying a majority of the state’s budget — 63 cents on every dollar — goes to education.

O’Brien, a rural Tonganoxie resident, added that the Legislature’s efforts have given more local control to school boards. She said many local districts had given raises to their teachers.

Harris, though, said legislators’ decision to remove due process for teachers in the event of termination sent the wrong message to educators.

“They can come in and say ‘you’re done, pack up and leave,'” Harris said of an administrator handling potential termination without due process.

He said the state previously had a procedure that worked.

Barton questioned Harris’ doom-and-gloom views on education.

“Since 2011, we’ve added 400 teachers,” Barton said. “It’s such a horrible place to be a teacher in Kansas.”

Harris said that didn’t take into account roughly 800 who had left.

“I don’t think it’s working well,” Harris said.

Barton and O’Brien said they didn’t favor Medicaid expansion. O’Brien praised KanCare has an alternative.

Harris said the state dropped the ball by passing on $300 million in federal funding for Medicaid. He said it was done simply because legislators didn’t want to be associated with the Affordable Care Act.

Evans’ final question focused on a topic about which he’d received many questions: abortion. The moderator asked candidates their stances on the subject.

O’Brien, the mother of 11 and grandmother of 15, said she was against abortion and is “defending the defenseless.”

Barton said abortion was “wrong without question.”

Harris said it’s a private decision that a woman must make and that each individual case is unique.

The general election will be 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Nov. 4.