Chris Biggs
Encyclopedia
Chris Biggs was the 30th Secretary of State of Kansas
. He was appointed on March 16, 2010 by Governor Mark Parkinson to replace Ron Thornburgh
who resigned on February 15, 2010. On Nov. 2nd, 2010, he was defeated for election to a full term.
Biggs Served as Kansas Securities Commissioner from 2003 until his appointment as Secretary of State. Prior to that, he served as Geary County Prosecutor from 1989 to 2003 and as a public defender from 1983 to 1988.
In 2002, he was the Democratic nominee for Attorney General, losing to Republican
Phill Kline
by less than 1%.
—the youngest of five children. His family settled in Manhattan, Kansas
when Chris was a child. His father, John, ran a local hardware store and served as a state restaurant inspector. His mother, Bernice, was a staff secretary at Kansas State University
. He graduated from Manhattan High School
in 1976.
, graduating in 1983.
for the 8th Judicial District in Kansas, based in Junction City
. His first case was an argument in front of the Kansas Supreme Court
.
In 1988, Biggs was elected to serve as the prosecutor
for Geary County, and was subsequently re-elected three times. In the 14 years he served as prosecutor, he tried over 20,000 cases; the most notable of these was the trial of Sabine Davidson. Davidson was charged with unintentional second-degree murder in the death of an 11 year-old boy who had been mauled by her three Rottweilers. Biggs’ prosecution of Davidson resulted in a conviction of second-degree murder and a sentence of 12 years in prison—the first conviction of its kind in the nation. The trial earned Biggs the 1998 Kansas Outstanding Prosecutor Award.
chose not to seek re-election. Phill Kline, a former state legislator, emerged from a bruising Republican primary, defeating David Adkins; Biggs ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Biggs was endorsed by the Mainstream Coalition, the Fraternal Order of Police
, the Kansas City Star, the Wichita Eagle, former Attorney General Vern Miller, and the Topeka Capital-Journal.
Though Kline led in the polls throughout the race, the final tally was too close to call on election night; in the end, Kline won by 0.5% of the total vote (4,287 vote margin out of 821,107 cast).
Kathleen Sebelius
named Biggs to be the Kansas Securities Commissioner, saying that Biggs “was a good fit.” As Securities Commissioner, Biggs personally prosecuted Thomas Etheredge, founder of the failed Wild West World
theme park north of Wichita
, for securities fraud
; Etheredge was convicted on seven of nine counts and sentenced to five years in prison.
announced his resignation to accept a position in the private sector. After interviewing 15 candidates, Governor Mark Parkinson chose Biggs to fill the vacancy.
Biggs is only the second Democratic Secretary of State in Kansas since statehood, and the first in nearly 60 years; Larry Ryan was the other, serving from 1949-1951.
, whom he defeated with a 60%-40% victory in the August 3rd election. On the Republican side, a three-way battle for the nomination was won by Kris Kobach
, a University of Missouri-Kansas City law professor and former Kansas State Republican Party chairman; he defeated Shawnee County Elections Commissioner Elizabeth Ensley and JR Claeys, capturing 51% of the vote.
On November 2, 2010, Kobach defeated Biggs by a margin of 59%-37%.
musician. He has won several awards for his guitar
-playing skills, including three straight third-place finishes at the National Flatpicking Championships held each year at the Walnut Valley Festival
in Winfield, KS. He was the Kansas Guitar Picking Champion in 1982, 1990, and 1994, as well as the Kansas Banjo Picking Champion in 1994.
He has been involved in several civic organizations: Big Brothers and Big Sisters
, Rotary International
, the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association, the Kansas Bar Association
, and the Kansas Bluegrass Association.
Biggs lives in the Flint Hills
with his son.
Secretary of State of Kansas
The Secretary of State of Kansas is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Kansas.-History:The first Secretary of State for Kansas was John Winter Robinson, a physician from Manhattan, Kansas...
. He was appointed on March 16, 2010 by Governor Mark Parkinson to replace Ron Thornburgh
Ron Thornburgh
Ron E. Thornburgh, was the 29th Secretary of State of Kansas. He was elected in to his first term in 1994 and was subsequently re-elected in 1998, 2002, and 2006....
who resigned on February 15, 2010. On Nov. 2nd, 2010, he was defeated for election to a full term.
Biggs Served as Kansas Securities Commissioner from 2003 until his appointment as Secretary of State. Prior to that, he served as Geary County Prosecutor from 1989 to 2003 and as a public defender from 1983 to 1988.
In 2002, he was the Democratic nominee for Attorney General, losing to Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Phill Kline
Phill Kline
Phillip D. "Phill" Kline is the former district attorney of Johnson County, Kansas, USA. From January 2003 to January 2007, he was the Attorney General of Kansas. Kline, a member of the Republican Party, lost re-election as attorney general to Democratic challenger Paul Morrison on November 7,...
by less than 1%.
Early life
Biggs was born on October 14, 1958 in Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
—the youngest of five children. His family settled in Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281...
when Chris was a child. His father, John, ran a local hardware store and served as a state restaurant inspector. His mother, Bernice, was a staff secretary at Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
. He graduated from Manhattan High School
Manhattan High School
Manhattan High School is a fully accredited public high school in Manhattan, Kansas, serving students in grades 9-12. It is part of the Unified School District No. 383. For the 2010–2011 school year, Manhattan High had an enrollment of 1,984 students....
in 1976.
Education
Biggs graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Kansas State University in 1980 with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work. He attended the University of Kansas School of LawUniversity of Kansas School of Law
The University of Kansas School of Law is a public law school located on the main campus of the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. The University of Kansas Law School was founded in 1893, replacing the earlier Department of Law, which had existed since 1878. The school has more than 50...
, graduating in 1983.
Legal career
Upon graduation from law school, Biggs started working as a public defenderPublic defender
The term public defender is primarily used to refer to a criminal defense lawyer appointed to represent people charged with a crime but who cannot afford to hire an attorney in the United States and Brazil. The term is also applied to some ombudsman offices, for example in Jamaica, and is one way...
for the 8th Judicial District in Kansas, based in Junction City
Junction City, Kansas
Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 23,353. Fort Riley, a major U.S. Army post, is nearby...
. His first case was an argument in front of the Kansas Supreme Court
Kansas Supreme Court
The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority in the state of Kansas. Composed of seven justices, led by Chief Justice Lawton Nuss, the Court supervises the legal profession, administers over the judicial branch, and serves as the state court of last resort in the appeals...
.
In 1988, Biggs was elected to serve as the prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
for Geary County, and was subsequently re-elected three times. In the 14 years he served as prosecutor, he tried over 20,000 cases; the most notable of these was the trial of Sabine Davidson. Davidson was charged with unintentional second-degree murder in the death of an 11 year-old boy who had been mauled by her three Rottweilers. Biggs’ prosecution of Davidson resulted in a conviction of second-degree murder and a sentence of 12 years in prison—the first conviction of its kind in the nation. The trial earned Biggs the 1998 Kansas Outstanding Prosecutor Award.
2002 election for Attorney General
In 2002, incumbent Attorney General of Kansas Carla StovallCarla Stovall
Carla J. Stovall , also known as Carla Stovall Steckline, is a Republican politician from Marion, Kansas who served as Attorney General of the State of Kansas from 1995 to 2003....
chose not to seek re-election. Phill Kline, a former state legislator, emerged from a bruising Republican primary, defeating David Adkins; Biggs ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Biggs was endorsed by the Mainstream Coalition, the Fraternal Order of Police
Fraternal Order of Police
The Fraternal Order of Police is an organization of sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. It claims a membership of over 325,000 members organized in 2100 local chapters , organized into local lodges, state lodges, and the national Grand Lodge...
, the Kansas City Star, the Wichita Eagle, former Attorney General Vern Miller, and the Topeka Capital-Journal.
Though Kline led in the polls throughout the race, the final tally was too close to call on election night; in the end, Kline won by 0.5% of the total vote (4,287 vote margin out of 821,107 cast).
Kansas Securities Commissioner
In May of 2003, Governor of KansasGovernor of Kansas
The Governor of the State of Kansas is the head of state for the State of Kansas, United States. Under the Kansas Constitution, the Governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the Kansas executive branch, of the government of Kansas. The Governor is the...
Kathleen Sebelius
Kathleen Sebelius
Kathleen Sebelius is an American politician currently serving as the 21st Secretary of Health and Human Services. She was the second female Governor of Kansas from 2003 to 2009, the Democratic respondent to the 2008 State of the Union address, and chair-emerita of the Democratic Governors...
named Biggs to be the Kansas Securities Commissioner, saying that Biggs “was a good fit.” As Securities Commissioner, Biggs personally prosecuted Thomas Etheredge, founder of the failed Wild West World
Wild West World
Wild West World was a Wild West theme park in Park City, Kansas that opened on May 5, 2007 and closed on July 9, 2007. It was located on along Interstate 135 near Wichita.-History:...
theme park north of Wichita
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
, for securities fraud
Securities fraud
Securities fraud, also known as stock fraud and investment fraud, is a practice that induces investors to make purchase or sale decisions on the basis of false information, frequently resulting in losses, in violation of the securities laws....
; Etheredge was convicted on seven of nine counts and sentenced to five years in prison.
Secretary of State
In January 2010, Biggs announced his candidacy for Secretary of State. One month later, then-Secretary of State Ron ThornburghRon Thornburgh
Ron E. Thornburgh, was the 29th Secretary of State of Kansas. He was elected in to his first term in 1994 and was subsequently re-elected in 1998, 2002, and 2006....
announced his resignation to accept a position in the private sector. After interviewing 15 candidates, Governor Mark Parkinson chose Biggs to fill the vacancy.
Biggs is only the second Democratic Secretary of State in Kansas since statehood, and the first in nearly 60 years; Larry Ryan was the other, serving from 1949-1951.
2010 Election
Biggs faced a primary challenge for the Democratic nomination for Secretary of State by Kansas State Sen. Chris SteinegerChris Steineger
Chris Steineger is a former Democrat and current Republican member of the Kansas Senate, representing the 6th District since 1997. He was once the Senate Minority Whip. He is married and lives in Kansas City, KS.-Biography:...
, whom he defeated with a 60%-40% victory in the August 3rd election. On the Republican side, a three-way battle for the nomination was won by Kris Kobach
Kris Kobach
Kris W. Kobach is the Secretary of State of Kansas. He is also currently of counsel with the Immigration Law Reform Institute in Washington, D.C....
, a University of Missouri-Kansas City law professor and former Kansas State Republican Party chairman; he defeated Shawnee County Elections Commissioner Elizabeth Ensley and JR Claeys, capturing 51% of the vote.
On November 2, 2010, Kobach defeated Biggs by a margin of 59%-37%.
Personal life
Biggs is an accomplished bluegrassBluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
musician. He has won several awards for his guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
-playing skills, including three straight third-place finishes at the National Flatpicking Championships held each year at the Walnut Valley Festival
Walnut Valley Festival
The Walnut Valley Festival is a well-known acoustic music festival, held annually in Winfield, Kansas. The main genre of music is bluegrass, but other acoustic styles are represented...
in Winfield, KS. He was the Kansas Guitar Picking Champion in 1982, 1990, and 1994, as well as the Kansas Banjo Picking Champion in 1994.
He has been involved in several civic organizations: Big Brothers and Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America is a 501 non-profit organization whose mission is to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships with mentors that try to have a measurable impact on youth....
, Rotary International
Rotary International
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
, the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association, the Kansas Bar Association
Kansas Bar Association
The Kansas Bar Association is a voluntary, non-profit bar association for the state of Kansas with the headquarters located at 12th and Harrison St. in Topeka. The KBA has approximately 7,000 members and was founded in 1882.- Membership :...
, and the Kansas Bluegrass Association.
Biggs lives in the Flint Hills
Flint Hills
The Flint Hills, historically known as Bluestem Pastures or Blue Stem Hills, are a band of hills in eastern Kansas stretching into north-central Oklahoma, extending from Marshall County, Kansas and Washington County, Kansas in the north to Cowley County, Kansas and Osage County, Oklahoma in the south...
with his son.