Kansas AG wants to end elections chief’s prosecution power

(AP) Kansas’ attorney general is proposing to strip the secretary of state’s office of its power to prosecute election fraud cases.

The proposal from Attorney General Derek Schmidt comes less than four years after fellow Republican and Secretary of State Kris Kobach persuaded legislators to grant him prosecutorial power. Kobach became the first secretary of state in the nation to have such power in July 2015.

Schmidt announced the proposal Friday, and Secretary of State-elect Scott Schwab said he supports it. The GOP-controlled Legislature would consider the measure after convening its next annual session in January.

Kobach will leave the secretary of state’s office in January after an unsuccessful run for governor.

He had argued that the attorney general and local prosecutors were often too busy to handle election fraud cases.