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Last edited Fri May 1, 2026, 09:24 AM - Edit history (1)

(Mrs. Hatrack here, posting on Hatrack's account.)

I saw an earlier post about Rev. Hamilton's decision to run for the US Senate in Kansas, and DU posters were saying they weren't sure what to make of it because they didn't know much about him. I don't go to his church, but I live in the metro area where his church is located, so I am very aware of him.

A few things to know about him:

When the United Methodist Church was having a major struggle over LGBTQ issues -- I believe it was over ordination of LGBTQ people to serve as clergy -- Rev. Hamilton was a major, high profile church leader on the pro-LGBTQ side of that issue.

If you read the AP article that the original post links to, it mentions that he was registered as a Republican for the August 2020 primary. Don't necessarily interpret that to mean that he considered himself a Republican at that time -- in that part of Kansas, Johnson County, which has evolved over the years from being predominantly Republican to being pretty consistently blue, it has been common for Democrats to register as Republicans to try to sway the Republican primaries to pick more moderate, sane Republican candidates. I don't know if that was his motivation for registering as Republican in 2020, but my hunch is that is why.

He is very highly regarded as a force for civility, and his church is very active in doing good works in the community.

Keep your eye on this race - it could be an interesting one, like the James Talarico race in Texas.