Topeka's 2025 Election Results: Voters Reject MAGA Disruption

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In the 2025 municipal elections, Topeka voters sent a clear message: continuity and competence won out over disruption and ideological extremism. With decisive margins across key races—most notably the mayoral contest—voters overwhelmingly chose to retain incumbents and reject candidates aligned with the MAGA movement, including Henry McClure, a self-styled “MAGA McClure” who ran on a populist, anti-bureaucracy platform and lost in a landslide. Topeka’s 2025 election results showed a decisive mandate.

Topeka’s 2025 election results: Mayoral Race: Duncan Crushes McClure

Topeka City Councilman Spencer Duncan won the mayoral race with 75.1% of the vote, defeating McClure, who garnered just 24.3%. Final unofficial results from the Shawnee County Election Office showed Duncan received 12,723 votes, while McClure earned 4,111 votes (www.sos.ks.gov/elections/election-statistics.html)(www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2025/11/04/topeka-mayor-race-spencer-duncan-vs-henry-mcclure-2025-election-results/87010883007).

Duncan, a Topeka native and longtime public servant, ran on a platform emphasizing public safety, infrastructure, transparency, and housing reform. “I really am humbled by the fact that I’m the mayor-elect of the city I grew up in,” Duncan told the Topeka Capital-Journal. “That’s kind of an amazing thing. And it’s the capital city” (www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2025/11/04/topeka-mayor-race-spencer-duncan-vs-henry-mcclure-2025-election-results/87010883007).

Duncan Crushes "MAGA McClure" in stunning decision — Duncan Crushes “MAGA McClure” in stunning decision

McClure, a real estate broker and developer, had previously run unsuccessfully for Shawnee County Commission in 2024. He positioned himself as a political outsider, railing against city bureaucracy and pledging to “give the people a voice.” He also expressed admiration for the national direction of the Republican Party under Trump, telling the Capital-Journal, “I like where the Republican party is moving on a national basis” (www.yahoo.com/news/topeka-real-estate-broker-henry-090302626.html). And that is most likely exactly what cost him the election. Trump and MAGA are not very popular after all. Topeka’s 2025 election results, as well as nationwide elections returns have proven this.

Despite his branding as a MAGA-aligned candidate, McClure’s message failed to resonate with Topeka voters, who opted for Duncan’s pragmatic and locally focused approach.

Democracy Dropkick: Voter Outrage and Frustration with ALL Things Trump cost many MAGA candidates dearly all across the board on Niv 4

Voter Turnout and Demographics

Key Takeaways
Duncan won every precinct with margins ranging from 75% to 77%.
McClure failed to break 25% in any precinct, despite his visibility and branding as a MAGA-aligned candidate.
Turnout was strongest in precincts 103 and 105, both of which leaned heavily toward Duncan.
This data reinforces the broader narrative that Topeka voters rejected MAGA-style disruption and opted for experienced, pragmatic leadership. Duncan’s support was geographically broad and demographically consistent.

Topeka’s 2025 municipal voter turnout by precinct, compared to 2023 and 2021. Precincts are color-coded to show whether turnout increased (green), decreased (red), or remained stable (yellow) relative to both prior cycles.
The map reveals that:
Precincts 1, 3, 6, 8, and 9 saw increased turnout, suggesting heightened engagement in areas with contested races or strong local issues.
Precincts 2 and 10 experienced declines, possibly due to voter fatigue or lack of competitive races.
Precincts 4, 5, and 7 remained relatively stable, with turnout within a narrow range of previous years.
This pattern supports the broader narrative that while overall turnout was modest (~22.3%), it was higher than the 2021 and 2023 municipal cycles, especially in areas where voters were energized by specific candidates or issues.

According to the Shawnee County Election Office, 17,000+ voters participated in the general election, out of 76,379 registered voters, yielding a turnout rate of approximately 22.3%—a notable increase from the 9.74% turnout in the August primary (www.cjonline.com/story/news/local/2025/11/04/topeka-area-voter-turnout-seems-on-pace-to-finish-above-average/87085653007).

(www.snco.us/election) ← Shawnee County Election Office Topeka’s 2025 election results

In the primary, Duncan had already demonstrated strong support, receiving 60.16% of the vote compared to McClure’s 14.27% (www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2025/08/05/spencer-duncan-and-henry-mcclure-top-2-candidates-for-topeka-mayor/85530544007).

While municipal elections in Kansas are officially nonpartisan, candidate affiliations and endorsements often signal ideological leanings. Duncan’s campaign was supported by a broad coalition of civic leaders and local organizations, while McClure’s MAGA branding and anti-establishment rhetoric aligned him with national Trump-style politics. McClure made his ideological leanings to Trump and “MAGA” a well known part of his campaign, most by word of mouth. Of all the candidates for all positions, McClure was definitely the most vocal about his proclivities towards Trump. It did him no favors, as was the trend nationwide with candidates and issues aligned with Trump. Across the board Trump and MAGA were repudiated and rejected.

MAGA Candidates Falter Nationwide—and in Topeka

Even in Topeka Kansas, MAGA did not play well with voters. Or perhaps the MAGA voters were just too drunk to find their way to the polls?

McClure’s defeat mirrors a broader trend seen across the country in 2025: Trump-endorsed and MAGA-aligned candidates underperformed, especially in urban and suburban areas. From school board races to city councils, voters rejected candidates who echoed Trump’s grievance politics and election denialism.

In Topeka, this rejection was particularly stark. McClure’s campaign leaned heavily on slogans about “draining the swamp” and dismantling city bureaucracy, but lacked concrete policy proposals. His refusal to accept campaign donations and his confrontational tone may have further alienated moderate voters.

The Topeka Capital-Journal noted that McClure’s platform “revolves around infrastructure & economic development and transparency,” but his messaging was often overshadowed by his ideological branding and past electoral losses (www.ksnt.com/elections/results-of-the-topeka-mayoral-primary-election/).

Status Quo Prevails in City Council and School Board Races; Topeka’s 2025 election results

Voters delivered a sweeping rebuke of Trump and MAGA ideology in the November 4, 2025 elections, with Democratic victories fueled by anger over the GOP-led government shutdown and halted SNAP benefits.
Democrats swept gubernatorial and mayoral races in Virginia, New Jersey, New York City, and California, flipping key seats and outperforming expectations in competitive districts (www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/11/05/democrats-trump-2025-elections-takeaways/86844602007).
In Virginia, Abigail Spanberger defeated Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome-Earle Sears by a double-digit margin, driven by federal workers’ outrage over the longest government shutdown in U.S. history (www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2025/11/04/election-2025-live-updates-results/86572339007). The shutdown has left millions without SNAP benefits, triggering food insecurity in Kansas, Pennsylvania, and Georgia (www.snopes.com/news/2025/10/21/snap-benefits-november-shutdown), (www.cbsnews.com/news/government-shutdown-snap-benefits-delayed-usda), (www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/states-start-halting-snap-benefits-amid-shutdown/story?id=126716354).
Exit polls showed 67% of voters cited the shutdown and halted benefits as a “major factor” in their vote (www.deadline.com/2025/11/2025-elections-results-trump-1236607093). In New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill’s win reflected suburban backlash against Trump’s “broken promises” and “cruelty toward working families” (www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2025/11/05/trump-election-day-mamdani-win/87102575007).
In New York City, Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral race with a platform opposing Trump’s policies and expanding public aid. Youth turnout surged, with voters under 30 making up 28% of the electorate, a 9-point jump from 2021 (www.youthdata.circle.tufts.edu), (www.circle.tufts.edu/explore-our-data/youth-voting-and-civic-engagement-america).
Pollsters called the results a “referendum on Trump’s return to power,” with Trump’s approval rating plunging to 34% nationally (www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/11/05/what-is-trump-latest-polls-approval-rating-2025-government-shutdown/87105793007).
The message from voters: extremism and dysfunction are out. Accountability and aid are back on the ballot.

Beyond the mayoral race, Topeka voters largely chose to retain incumbents and support candidates with established records. In District 7, Michelle Bradberry defeated Earl McIntosh in a closely watched city council race, while school board contests in USD 501 and USD 450 saw strong turnout and support for candidates focused on educational stability and equity (www.cjonline.com/story/news/local/2025/11/04/topeka-area-voter-turnout-seems-on-pace-to-finish-above-average/87085653007).

These Topeka’s 2025 election results suggest that Topekans are more interested in competent governance and local problem-solving than national ideological battles. The rejection of McClure and other MAGA -style candidates reflects a broader civic desire to maintain momentum on infrastructure, housing, and public safety—issues that Duncan and other incumbents have prioritized.

Conclusion: Stability Over Spectacle

Maybe "The Swamp" wasn't the problem after all?

The 2025 Topeka municipal elections were a referendum on leadership style and civic priorities. Voters chose stability over spectacle, rejecting MAGA-aligned candidates like Henry McClure in favor of experienced, pragmatic leaders like Spencer Duncan.

With a decisive mandate, Duncan now faces the challenge of delivering on his promises while navigating a politically diverse city. But if the election results are any indication, Topekans are ready to move forward—not backward—and they’ve made it clear that Trump-style politics have no place in their city hall.