Ray Merrick has money in his campaign account, and he's bored. That's the answer Merrick gives when asked whether he'll run for the Kansas House in 2018.
Merrick, a Stillwell Republican, served from 2013 to 2017 as Speaker of the Kansas House. He didn't seek re-election in 2016. He was replaced in the House by Rep. Sean Tarwater, who in his first month in office voted for a retroactive tax increase. Tarwater would cast similar votes throughout the 2017 session, culminating in a veto override vote that ripped an extra $1.2 billion from taxpayers' wallets.
The seat, the 27th District, is a decidely conservative one. His predecessors in the seat include former Reps. Phyllis Gilmore and Charlotte O'Hara.
Merrick's House campaign finance report filed in 2015 showed cash-on-hand of more than $100,000. Tarwater's last report showed $153 cash-on-hand.