Democrat · Kansas Senate · 2026
Adam Hamilton
Hamilton met his wife, LaVon, as a teenager.
Biography
Adam Hamilton met his wife, LaVon, as a teenager in the Kansas City suburbs. They have two daughters and a granddaughter, and his Kansas family roots reach back to ancestors who settled in Dickinson County in the 1870s.1 The couple also have two dogs.2
In 1990, Hamilton and LaVon started the Church of the Resurrection with four people; it eventually grew to roughly 24,000 members.1 Its outreach has included beds for children, mobile food pantries, school partnerships and a dental clinic serving children who lack access to care.1 Hamilton has also written more than 30 books on faith, doubt and everyday life.1
His Senate agenda puts healthcare costs near the center: he wants to reverse Medicaid reductions, restore enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits and expand Medicare's drug price negotiations to reach more medicines and private insurance.3 He also advocates Medicare dental and vision coverage and better reimbursement for care that helps older people remain at home.3
Hamilton supports tax credits for first homebuyers and public servants, restrictions on corporate home purchases and requirements that data centers cover their electricity costs.3 He favors congressional term limits and a stock trading ban, and says he would vote to end the Iran war and require congressional approval for new tariffs.2 He is challenging Republican Senator Roger Marshall in a race drawing national attention over healthcare, housing and household expenses.4
Record and controversies
Church response to abuse reports
During the 2026 Democratic primary, Patrick Schmidt accused Hamilton of mishandling abuse reports involving a church camp volunteer.5 Court records reviewed by Kansas Reflector showed that church leaders investigated 2005 allegations internally without initially alerting authorities; after another report of nighttime room entries in 2006, they reported both years and barred the volunteer from working with young people.5 The county prosecutor declined that case.5 The church subsequently changed its volunteer screening and reporting rules.5 The report also noted that a man who spoke with Hamilton in 2010 then reported older abuse; the volunteer's later conviction concerned a different incident.5 Hamilton's campaign said he had not attended either camp session and called Schmidt's attacks false; Kansas Reflector could not verify many of Schmidt's claims in court records.5
Church resources complaint
Kansas Republican Party officials filed an April 2026 FEC complaint alleging that church communications and resources improperly promoted Hamilton's potential Senate bid.6 The church said informing members about its founding pastor's possible career change was necessary, and its published boundaries prohibited campaign use of church resources and staff work time.6 The cited report describes a party complaint, not an FEC ruling that a violation occurred.6