Phillip Brownlee, opinion page editor of the Wichita Eagle, here recommends that the legislature pass HB 2017, the bill that eases ballot access in special U.S. House elections. His column puts more emphasis on the part of the bill that modernizes schedules for special elections, but the bottom does mention the part of the bill that eases the petition burdens on independent candidates. The bill lowers the petition requirement from 4% of the number of registered voters (approximately 17,000 signatures) to exactly 1,000 signatures.

The column does not mention the other ballot access improvement, to let qualified minor parties nominate in such elections with no petition needed. That part of the bill makes it easy for the Libertarian Party to run someone.