Erik Murray is on a mission. The Kansas City, Kansas businessman is running for U.S. Senate, hoping to dislodge Roger Marshall and become the first Democrat since 1932 to represent Kansas in the Senate.
The long odds don’t faze Murray, who made his second visit to Allen County in as many weeks Tuesday, meeting with Democrats in Iola and Humboldt before heading to an event in Neosho County.
“I believe we can win,” said Murray. “Right now, I’m focused on trying to rebuild the belief that Kansas is in play. Everyone I meet is happy to talk about solutions. I truly believe that 75% of Kansans agree on 75% of the issues.”
If you’ve never heard of him, you’re not alone. This is Murray’s first attempt at running for office. He’s a real estate developer who grew up in Wyandotte County, earned a full-ride scholarship to the University of Southern California, and then returned to Kansas City to found Eastside Innovation LLC, a commercial real estate and clean energy infrastructure development firm.
Murray’s focus on “triple-bottom line” projects— developments weigh profits, people and the planet equally — helped raise the 44-year-old’s profile. He’s now criss-crossing the state in his truck, an electric GMC Sierra. On his phone, a countdown clock marks the days until Nov. 4, the date of the midterm election. His daughter Alyssa, taking a break from Stanford to manage the nascent campaign, is in the passenger seat.
MURRAY entered the race last December. According to data from the Federal Election Commission, he raised almost $125,000 by year’s end. “That money all comes from individuals,” Murray said Tuesday. “None of our funding comes from PACs or corporations. We are campaigning with positive energy, putting that into the world, and we’re seeing it come back.”
His campaign hinges on three issues: healthcare, education and affordability. “I want to be about solutions,” he said. “A lot of people think we can cut our way out of all our problems. We need to grow our way out, too. We need to reinvest in what we have and focus on smart growth.”
Murray expressed frustration with recent attempts by Republicans to redraw Kansas’s congressional districts and said he would be focused on fully funding public education. Murray said he wants Congressional term limits and would work to ban Congressional stock trading, undo Trump’s tariff policy, and raise the minimum wage.
THE DEMOCRAT has considerable ground to make up. Republican incumbent Roger Marshall, the state’s junior Senator currently in his first term, ended 2025 with more than $4 million cash on hand.
Marshall captured 53% of the vote in 2020, defeating former Kansas State Senator Barbara Bollier. Marshall, an obstetrician who began his career in politics in 2016, represented Kansas’s 1st District in the U.S. House before running for Senate. He’s running unopposed for the Republican nomination.
Murray also faces a crowded and competitive Democratic primary, with six candidates filing so far. Johnson County Democrat Sandy Spidel Neumann, a retired executive who lives in Merriam, ended 2025 with over $126,000 cash on hand. Besides Murray and Spidel Neumann, other candidates include:
• Christy Davis, a former U.S. Department of Agriculture administrator
• Anne Parelkar, an immigration attorney from Overland Park
• Michael Soetaert
• Kansas State Senator Michael Schmidt
The primary is Tuesday, Aug. 4.
