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Sedgwick County election office requests modest 2026 increase as officials warn of $11–12 million equipment cost
Summary
Election Commissioner Laura Rainwater asked the Sedgwick County Commission to approve a roughly $240,000 increase in the 2026 election budget—largely personnel for a gubernatorial year—and warned the county faces an equipment purchase that could cost an estimated $11–12 million depending on federal certification timetables.
Laura Rainwater, Sedgwick County Election Commissioner, presented the office’s 2026 operating request and described staffing, mandatory duties and a looming large equipment purchase. Rainwater told the Board the office is currently at full administrative staffing and has 9.2 FTE in election operations, with many temporary poll-worker positions unfilled between elections. She said mandatory services include election administration and candidate filings, equipment security and maintenance, voter-registration list maintenance, ballot printing and required federal and state compliance work. She described nonmandatory work—student engagement, a sticker contest and mock or school elections—that she said help…
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