Kansas Lawmaker Staging Write-In Campaign After Primary Loss To Teen Who Admitted Sending Revenge Porn, Cyberbullying

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Coverage By Soumyadeep Pal

August 19, 2020

TOPLINE

Stan Frownfelter, a seven-term Kansas lawmaker, has announced he will stage a write in-campaign to keep his seat after narrowly losing the Aug. 4 Democratic primary to 19-year-old Aaron Coleman, who has admitted to distributing revenge porn featuring an underaged girl and has said he would “laugh and giggle” if a former Republican lawmaker died of coronavirus.

Kansas state Reps. Stan Frownfelter, left, of Kansas City; Carolyn Bridges, center, of Wichita, and … [+] Jim Ward, right, of Wichita, follow a House debate on a bill to bring Kansas into a compact with other states seeking to exempt themselves from the federal health care overhaul, Friday, March 21, 2014, at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan. The three Democrats oppose the measure. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

ASSOCIATED PRESS

KEY FACTS

Coleman will be the only name on the ballot in the general election for the Kansas City-based 37th District state House seat; no Republican candidate filed to run.

He defeated Frownfelter in the primary by a vote count of 823-809, after positioning himself as a progressive who supports the Green New Deal, saying “I’m a 19-year old college student who scrubs dishes, so I won’t have the benefit of high-powered Topeka and KCMO lawyers who will flood our town to deny the people their voice.”

But Coleman entered the race with a tremendous amount of baggage, openly admitting that he blackmailed an underage girl and later distributed sexually explicit images after he got ahold of a nude photo and demanded she send him more, which she refused to do.

He also reportedly bullied another girl to the point she considered committing suicide, with Coleman calling her a “whale” and telling her to “go on a diet.”

Coleman has said “all these allegations are both true and occurred digitally” on his campaign’s Facebook page, adding, “I denounce these actions and they are actions of a sick and troubled 14-yo boy.”

Democrats have denounced Coleman’s campaign, with Gov. Laura Kelly saying through a spokesperson that Coleman is “not fit to serve in the Legislature.”

CRITICAL QUOTE

“John, I’m going to laugh and giggle when you get COVID and die,” Coleman said in a Facebook post aimed at Republican former state Rep. John Whitmer. “At least we can say you died doing what you love. Ask your buddy Herman Cain how it worked out for him.”

TANGENT

Coleman has gone on his own “mask it or casket” effort to encourage mask-wearing in public.

KEY BACKGROUND

Frownfelter, who has represented the heavily Democratic Kansas City-based district since 2007, had said that Coleman was “embarrassing our party.” Frownfelter has decided to continue his campaign on write-in hopes, according to the Kansas Reflector, saying, “The voters in our community didn’t have a full understanding of my opponent, or the kind of person he really is,” adding voters were not aware of Coleman’s “dark side.”

SURPRISING FACT

Coleman does not have a traditional high school diploma, according to the Kansas Reflector, citing health issues, but said he has completed the requirements for a GED. Coleman said he is “lucky to be alive,” after facing mental health issues a few years ago, saying abuse he suffered in elementary school was neurologically damaging. He said he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder at age 15.

FURTHER READING

A 19-year-old who admitted to blackmail, revenge porn, and bullying won his primary race for the Kansas House and is now running unopposed (Insider)

Teen leading in Kansas race admits blackmail, revenge porn (Associated Press)

Kansas teen Democrat admits bullying, revenge porn — and thinks he should be in office? (Kansas City Star)

‘Mask it or casket’: Democratic House candidate hopes GOP stricken by COVID-19 (Kansas Reflector)

Frownfelter to attempt write-in campaign (Kansas Reflector)

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