海角大神

The Monitor's "Senate elections 101" series looks at the specific issues that will be driving voters in each of the 10 tossup races.

鈥淚鈥檓 the father of crop insurance,鈥� Sen. Pat Roberts (R) of Kansas said in his Oct. 15 debate with businessman Greg Orman, the political independent who is trying to unseat him.

Indeed, Senator Roberts 鈥� a member of Congress for 34 years 鈥� has a long record on agriculture, Kansas鈥檚 signature issue. And if Roberts wins reelection and Republicans take over the Senate, he is likely to become chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee. But you may not know any of this from his stump speech. He largely focuses on Mr. Orman and tries to paint him as a closet Democrat and President Obama-lover 鈥� an anathema in conservative Kansas.

To win reelection, Roberts must do well in western Kansas, farm country. Normally, that would mean touting his record on agriculture. But he鈥檚 also trying to win over tea party voters who opposed him in the GOP primary, and they don鈥檛 like big government spending 鈥� including farm subsidies and food stamps.

Roberts voted against the 2014 farm bill, which cost $1 trillion over 10 years and also reauthorized the federal food stamp program. His tea party opponent, Milton Wolf, also opposed the legislation. Orman supported it. His base of support is in Kansas鈥檚 urban and suburban areas, where a majority of the state鈥檚 population lives.

Roberts鈥檚 soft-pedaling of agriculture is risky. Older Kansans will remember Roberts鈥檚 history as a friend to farmers, but younger Kansans may not (and may not be aware of the endorsements of Roberts by agricultural interests.) That leaves a blank slate for Orman, and he has filled it with talk of Roberts as a creature of Washington 鈥� where he owns a home, not in Kansas 鈥� and its hyperpartisanship.

鈥淥rman is for the most part sticking to the theme of, 鈥業 will be a bridge-builder,鈥� 鈥� says Burdett Loomis, a political scientist at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. 鈥淩oberts simply says, 鈥業 will vote against Harry Reid,鈥� 鈥� the Democratic leader in the Senate.

Other issues have come up in Kansas鈥檚 Senate debates. Kansas鈥檚 immigrant population is growing, and Roberts is hardline: secure the border before any other reforms. Orman supports a path to citizenship for some of the nation鈥檚 11 million illegal immigrants.

On abortion, a key issue in socially conservative Kansas, Orman calls himself pro-choice 鈥� but says it鈥檚 time to move on. Roberts calls such a view 鈥渦nconscionable.鈥� On guns, Orman is the gun-owner and Roberts is not. But the gun lobby is supporting Roberts. Orman supports background checks.

On the Affordable Care Act, Roberts recites the Republican view, 鈥渞epeal and replace,鈥� but does not describe a replacement 鈥� or explain how to get around an Obama veto. Orman calls for 聽a focus on bringing down the cost of care.

Kansas has this year's oddest Senate race. There鈥檚 no Democrat on the ballot, leaving Orman to go head-to-head against Roberts. Orman has not stated which party he would caucus with if he wins. That makes Kansas a wild card on election night.

Please read our other entries in this series:

• Louisiana is a referendum on Mary Landrieu
• Colorado could come down to women's issues
• Kentucky聽is conflicted about Mitch McConnell
• Iowa is split between two very different candidates
• Georgia might turn on David Perdue gaffe
• North Carolina wary of Tillis's tea party revolution
• Arkansas considers ending its blue-state legacy
• Alaska's remotest places could be crucial
• New Hampshire shapes up as carpetbagger vs. rubber stamp聽
• The big Kansas issue Pat Roberts isn't talking about