TOPEKA — Retired Air Force Col. Chris Carmichael believes he can defeat Republican U.S. Rep. Ron Estes in the 4th District congressional race, even though the incumbent won the seat by a 30-point margin two years ago.
A Democrat hasn’t represented the Wichita-area district since Dan Glickman lost his reelection bid in 1994.
But Carmichael, an Andover Democrat who hopes his 31-year military career will win over “middle ground voters,” said this year is different because of voters’ disapproval of President Donald Trump.
And voters are wary of Estes’ “blind devotion” to Trump, Carmichael said on the Kansas Reflector podcast.
“You really need the perfect storm, to be straight up and honest with you. We are in a situation right now where they’re predicting a blue wave. There are so many things that are happening in the D.C. administration right now that Estes is supporting, from the war in Iran to tariffs,” Carmichael said.
“Kansans are intelligent voters,” he added. “They know what’s happening. They see what’s happening, and it’s not necessarily, for the majority, the preponderance of voters, a D or an R situation.”
Before he can take on Estes, Carmichael will face an unusually competitive field for the Democratic nomination.
Democrats Katy Tyndell, an oil and gas attorney, and Ryan Gilbert, a family law business manager, have filed with the Secretary of State’s Office for the 4th District race. Republican Frank McCollum, of Fall River, also has filed. The deadline to run is June 1.
Carmichael said he considers Tyndell a friend, the other Democrats in the race are “fighting the good fight,” and there isn’t much space between them on policy. The distinguishing factor, he said, is his leadership experience in the military and as the vice president of D-J Engineering, an aerospace company based in Augusta.
“We have to beat Ron Estes,” he said. “And in order to beat Ron Estes, we have to put our best foot forward as a Democratic Party.”
Carmichael said he grew up on the outskirts of Cleveland, where he started off working in construction and had “a rough go trying to make ends meet.”
He said he enlisted as a private in the Army, where he served for seven years, as a path to a college education. He earned a theater degree from Florida State University. Then, in what he described as “not exactly your normal military path,” he joined the Air Force because “it really fit my personality.”
In his 24 years with the Air Force, he served as a logistics officer — mostly “supply chain work and aerial port work, basically running an airport — passengers and cargo movement on aircraft.” That included 2.5 years in Afghanistan. He closed his military career from 2015 to 2019 at U.S. Central Command Headquarters, where he was the logistics lead for developing the Iran war plan.
“Now we’re in an unnecessary war in Iran,” he said. “We could have told you, don’t start a war with Iran, based on our war plan experience. And here, that’s exactly what happened.”
After he retired from the military, Carmichael said, he had to choose between job offers in Florida and Kansas.
“Frankly,” he said, “it’s no contest. Kansas wins every time. Florida’s definitely got its problems. It’s too hot, too much traffic, too many tourists.”
He said the family-like culture at D-J Engineering, which appealed to his Midwest values, was a deciding factor.
“Kansas is solid Midwest identity, and that’s where I grew up. That’s who I am,” he said. “I go into the stores in town and people say, ‘Hi.’ People talk to you. People are kind.”
Carmichael said he never had thought about running for public office before Trump returned to the White House last year. He grew frustrated with Estes voting for Trump’s agenda “without deviating for what’s right for Kansas.” The president’s tariffs, Carmichael said, were especially harmful to farmers’ supply chains.
“We’ve got piles next to our grain elevator of soybeans that are just rotting, and it’s because of the tariffs,” Carmichael said.
Carmichael described Trump’s handling of the Iran war as “amateur hour.”
He said military planners would have advised the president not to start the war. Iran now controls the Straight of Hormuz, gas prices have skyrocketed, and Iran’s leadership has been replaced with more hard-liners.
“It’s a lose, lose, lose situation, and we’re paying for it as an American consumer,” Carmichael said.
He said he favors the federal legalization of marijuana to create jobs and tax revenue. He said rural hospitals were already struggling before Republicans in Congress slashed billions from Medicaid spending. He said he’s “all for a strong border” and controlled immigration, but that Congress need to provide a faster track for workers to get a visa and apply for citizenship.
As for abortion rights, he said he won’t “be in that doctor’s office with that woman making the decision for her as a politician.”
“I was a part of the decision for my children being born, and there is no way in heck I’m ever not going to let my children be born,” Carmichael said. “I’m going to fight for their lives. But I understand the need, if a 12-year-old girl gets raped by her father, to not destroy that 12-year-old girl’s life.”