Shawnee, KS – Native Kansan and renowned meteorologist Mike Thompson, Republican of Shawnee, is running for the Kansas Senate in District 10. The seat has been held for the last 11 years by Mary Pilcher-Cook, who announced her decision to retire with an effective date of January 16th, 2020.
Per Kansas law, Republican Precinct Committee leaders within District 10 will select who fills the rest of the current term in an upcoming convention. An election for the full four-term term will be held in November of 2020. Mike Thompson will be running in both elections.
Thompson spent nearly 40 years in broadcasting, much of it as a well-known figure on two Kansas City television stations (KCTV5 and WDAF), retiring at the end of 2018. He won numerous awards and recognitions for his broadcasting work.
Beyond his work on television, Thompson was also heavily involved in the Kansas City community, particularly when it came to educating children about the weather. Mike originated, organized, wrote, and produced “Weathering the Storm,” an educational weather show designed for school children, for 20 years ending in 2018. Hundreds of thousands of children have attended the program, held each year at Kauffman Stadium, in conjunction with the Kansas City Royals. Between 2006 and 2014, he won six Emmy Awards for his meteorological work on-air and in for his work producing the weather show for School Day at the “K”.
Thompson said his decision to run for the Kansas Senate was driven by a desire to continue to serve the public he had taught about the weather for four decades and ensure that Topeka is working on behalf of the taxpayers.
“For 40 years, I enjoyed talking to people about the weather, providing them facts and information and warning them about dangerous conditions. Now, an unrelenting storm of higher taxes and spending increases threaten to leave Kansas behind the rest of the nation in terms of economic prosperity and quality job growth. For Kansans to feel confident about their economic future and the security of their pocketbook, these skies must clear and that means a legislature who is firmly on the side of the people who pay the bills,” said Thompson.
Thompson is a pro-life, committed conservative, who will uphold the core Republican principles of limited government, individual liberty, free enterprise, and traditional values.
“I look forward to continuing the proud tradition of Republican leadership from this district. I will work hard to earn the votes of the Republican Precinct Committee leaders in the next two weeks, and more importantly, the voters of Shawnee, Merriam, Lake Quivira, and Overland Park in the next year.”
Mike studied meteorology in the United States Navy, and after graduation was assigned as a weather observer/forecaster aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lexington until 1979. He began his television career in Oklahoma City, at KOKHTV and KWTV. He then moved to WPCQ-TV in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 1983, Mike became the chief meteorologist at KCTV in Kansas City, where he worked for 9 years before moving to WDAF-TV in 1992 where he was the Chief Meteorologist for 27 years. In October of 2019, Mike launched a non profit educational foundation, the Academy for Climate and Energy Analysis.
Thompson and his wife of 43 years, LeAnne, have 3 children and 10 grandchildren. Mike and his wife attend St. Joseph Catholic Church and have lived in Shawnee since 1983.
